GPs and weight gain

Question
QUESTION: Can a GP (General Practitioner) help someone with weight gain at all? how?

Thankyou.

ANSWER: Thank you for contacting allexperts.com. I hope that I can assist you with your question.

I'm sure that a general practitioner is capable of assisting you in gaining weight.  Most doctors have a fundamental knowledge of how calories work, although they generally do not know much about nutrition.  I'm certain if you go to a GP he will advise you to eat high-calorie foods such as ice cream, etc., to gain weight.

Of course, this is the worst thing that you could possibly do.  Dairy products contain high amounts of fat and other things which do not promote health.  They will certainly put the weight on, but not in a healthy way.

Increasing higher calorie foods such as avocados, nuts, peanut butter and other similar foods is a much better way to gain weight if you feel that doing so is necessary.

In fact, being slightly below what is considered "normal" weight has been shown to increase the life span of laboratory animals in a controlled environment.  There are certain fringe vegetarian groups who strive to maintain a weight significantly below "normal" in an effort to improve their over-all health and increase their longevity.  I would say that being five or then pounds underweight is not a serious concern.  However, being significantly underweight is not a good idea since you will not be obtaining sufficient nutrients if your calorie intake is too low.

If you can give me more information, I will be happy to discuss it with you further.  Please feel free to check out my blog http://everydayhealthandwellness.blogspot.com where many interesting subjects are discuss relating to health and wellness.

Thank you and take care.

Tasha

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you for your reply. I believe I am about 10 pounds or so underweight, being underweight hasn't affected me too much. Sometimes I cannot understand why I cannot gain weight, I have a good appetite and generally eat healthy, i put it down to genetics and a fast metabolism.

I am considering going to a doctor to see what they can do for me. Are there certain prescription medications that will help one gain weight?

Answer
Thank you for the follow-up question.

I know in the United States there are no medicines (to my knowledge) that are prescribed specifically for the purpose of gaining weight.  There are some medicines that cause weight gain, but this is usually just a side effect and it is against the law to prescribe medication for purposes for which they have NOT been approved by the Federal Drug Administration. Australia may be different.  They may have something there that has been developed solely for that purpose. In any case, I do not recommend taking any type of medication when there are alternative ways to achieve the same results.  Medication ALWAYS has dangerous side effects and often the results are not worth the potential complications that taking a medication could have.

If you wish to gain weight there is only one way to do it and that is to eat more calories than you burn.  As you mention, someone with a high metabolism or genetic predisposition to be very thin may have some difficulty gaining weight.  I personally know a man who eats quite a lot of food, but he has a very high metabolism and burns it off leaving him quite thin.

I would do a google search for healthy foods that are high in calories. As mentioned previously avocados, nuts, peanut butter, as well as dietary oils and many fruits like dates, figs, bananas etc., are very calorie dense. Perhaps eating more often and including a snack before bedtime would help. Making several smoothies from healthy, calorie dense foods per say would be a good way to increase your calorie intake.  If you tend to get sleepy after eating a big meal, you might also try to arrange your schedule to try to incorporate a nap after your mid-day meal.

Normally, I do not advocate drinking a lot of alcohol, however, beer can be quite calorie dense and it does provide some B Vitamins. I'm aware that beer is a very popular beverage in Australia.  Certainly, if you do not drink, then I do not recommend starting. However, if you are not opposed to drinking beer, then I might recommend consuming a few on a daily basis to up your calorie intake.  Just be sure to drink responsibly and never drink and drive or drink when you are operating heavy machinery or when being under the influence might be dangerous in any way.  

Best of luck in your efforts to put on a few pounds.

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