The right way to gain weight

Being underweight is seen as a curse by many and expert nutritionists encounter many such patients who are in distress because of low body weight, and want to put on weight immediately!

As it is with weight loss, weight gain too needs to be a gradual, well planned process. It is not possible to increase a person’s weight to the tune of 5 kilos in a month! There are many who try to eat all sorts of junk, high in sugar and fats believing they will help put on weight. But these practices result in long term damage to health, by increasing levels of bad cholesterol, and by increasing the risk of developing diabetes due to the high sugar load. Male teens are especially more prone to eating a bizarre diet to put on weight and look muscular! Also, the dangers of trying out various formulas and body building supplements are ever high. Unqualified fitness trainers recommend many substances which are dangerous to health and in their eagerness to try out anything that will help in weight gain, people often spend thousands without a second thought.

But weight gain is possible without resorting to all these fancy extras. There could be a number of causes for being underweight, such as:

Poor selection of food: Irregular eating habits or selecting the wrong kind of foods could be one reason for inadequate food intake resulting in lesser calories. Lack of time, or interest or both, could often be the limiting factor in choosing the right kind of foods. The problem is enhanced when an adult or a teen is living in a hostel or a paying guest facility, away from the family.  With no time or facilities to cook, one is dependent on the available foods which may not be to one’s liking.  Over time, this results in lesser intakes and decreased appetites.

Physical activity: People who are tense, nervous, anxious and extremely active tend to burn more energy than what they are able to eat. It is also possible that one is hyperactive since childhood and cannot sit still or sleep well habitually. This also results in excessive calorie expenditure.

Mother’s health status: Children who were born with a low birth weight have trouble reaching ideal weight later in life.

Any disease condition, including anemia or deficiency diseases: Conditions such as hyperthyroidism can affect the metabolic rate to a huge extent. People who have hyperthyroidism tend to have very high BMR, and burn energy at a very fast rate. Other illnesses such as infections or anemia which results in poor appetite can affect food intake.

Genetic predisposition:  Weight of an individual is basically inherited from the parents, and more often the mother. If the mother is thin, there is 75 % likelihood that the off spring carries that gene.

Planning a healthy diet that leads to gradual weight gain is best left to qualified expert nutritionists. However, these pointers can be useful in understanding the principles of diet planning.

Energy

To begin with, initially only 500 calories per day should be increased on the existing calorie intake. Too much too soon, will result in great imbalances in the way the body responds to the additional load. Also, digestion could be impaired if excess food is added at one time.

Proteins

Proteins should be gradually increased to achieve 1 kilo of good quality protein per kilo ideal body weight. Easily digestible proteins should be gradually added, such as boiled egg white, curds, steamed fish and sprouts.

Fats

It is important to increase healthy fats gradually.  These include monounsaturated fats from nuts, groundnut, sesame and olive oil and omega 3 fats from canola, rice bran and fish oils.  Butter, ghee and cream are high in saturated fats and need to be limited to one or two teaspoons a day. Too much fats lead to diarrhea and bloating.

Carbohydrates

High calorie fruits and vegetables like banana, yam, potato, colocasia, and chikkoo provide more calories and are healthy.  These are to be preferred over low calorie, watery vegetables such as cucumber, bottle gourd, etc.   While it is important to include all fruits and vegetables since they provide fiber and other vitamins, emphasis should be on high calorie ones.

Adding 500 kcal a day can be achieved by adding any combination below:

1 glass of whole milk + 1 boiled egg + 1 banana.

OR

2 chapattis + 1 bowl of dal + 1 cup paneer gravy + 1 chikkoo.

Customized diet plans are now available at the click of a button! No more confusion as to what to eat and what not to eat in order to gain weight the healthy way.