deficiency disease

American  

noun

Pathology.

1. any illness associated with an insufficient supply of one or more essential dietary constituents.

---

deficiency disease British  

noun

1. med any condition, such as pellagra, beriberi, or scurvy, produced by a lack of vitamins or other essential substances Compare avitaminosis

2. botany any disease caused by lack of essential minerals

---

Etymology

Origin of deficiency disease

First recorded in 1910–15

Example Sentences

It is a deficiency disease in which red blood cells are sickle-shaped, reducing oxygen perfusion into the blood.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

It is a deficiency disease in which red blood cells are sickle-shaped, increasing oxygen perfusion into the blood.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

David Salamone was a longtime patient at the National Institutes of Health, where he became the subject of a study on immune deficiency disease.

From Washington Post • Sep. 15, 2018

He pursued the causes of beriberi, the deficiency disease that attacks the nerves, heart and digestive system.

From Time Magazine Archive

Dr. Chiara, who had collapsed while driving himself on to care for the sick, was sure it was a deficiency disease.

From Space Prison by Godwin, Tom