1. to cause or reduce to a state of cretinism; to stunt the physical or mental development of a person, especially through iodine deficiency or other medical causes
Usage: medical/technical; third-person singular present tense of 'cretinize'
2. to make or treat someone as if they were a cretin; to degrade or demean intellectually
Usage: offensive; dated; derogatory

Examples

• Severe iodine deficiency cretinizes populations in regions without adequate salt iodization.
• The lack of proper nutrition cretinizes children's cognitive development.
• Medical interventions can prevent conditions that cretinize infants at birth.
• Historical public health campaigns aimed to eliminate practices that cretinize vulnerable populations.
• Untreated thyroid disorders can cretinize mental and physical growth in young children.