Campaigns against neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are taking a heavy hit in some parts of the world in the face of COVID-19.

While there are groups and individuals carrying out exceptional efforts to prevent major setbacks when it comes to delivering vital health services, nutrition and the role it plays in NTD transmission often go unnoticed.

On the one hand, research suggests that malnutrition exposes people to infection before it even occurs. When access to quality food is limited, as is the case in some low- and middle-income countries, people are more vulnerable to infections and are likely to experience more severe NTD symptoms.

On the other, NTDs, once they occur, can significantly contribute to malnutrition because of their devastating effects on the body, which exacerbates a vicious cycle of poor health and hunger.

While trying to fight off an infection caused by worms, larvae, or eggs, the body can ramp up its metabolic rate and deplete nutrients at a much higher rate than usual, a study on the role of nutrition in combating NTDs shows.

Breaking the cycle of malnutrition and infection could therefore be the answer to fighting NTDs — but that’s easier said than done, and COVID-19 could make matters much worse.

The pandemic has already pushed 150 million children into poverty, and, according to the United Nations, the number of people suffering from hunger could soon double because of it.

Research shows that while treatment programs against NTDs place a strong emphasis on drugs as a way to prevent the spread of disease, a focus on nutrition is equally — if not more — crucial when it comes to tackling them preemptively.

Read the full article about Neglected Tropical Diseases by Sarah El Gharib at Global Citizen.