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Underweight -- Advice for gaining weight w/UC?

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Posted 3/2/2008 9:36 PM (GMT 0)
I'm sure there will be people who will laugh at this since so many people have the opposite problem in life, but heck, we're all different.

I need to gain back about 5-10 pounds that I lost during my recent flare. Those 5-10 pounds are the difference between me looking thin and looking sickly. I also like knowing that I've got some extra pounds on me in case I get sick, I won't waste away to nothing.

So... given that I don't eat too much diary, what do you think I should eat to gain weight healthily?

I'm thinking I'll try to track down some non-dairy Ensure. (It's like the holy grail; I can never find it in stock around here.) I don't really like it that much and I think it keeps me from eating real meals... but I might as well try it.

Other than peanut butter (not healthy fat) and avocado (healthy fat), I don't have a list of things that will help me get back to a decent weight. Anyone want to make some suggestions? I don't eat a lot in general, so I can't just eat more and gain weight like a normal person.

Thanks!
Posted 3/2/2008 9:54 PM (GMT 0)
Here are suggestions on ways to increase caloric intake from the book "What to Eat with IBD." It's written by a registered dietician who herself has Crohn's and was first dxed with UC. BTW, she says peanut butter is a healthy fat. She says the only not healthy fats she lists are heavy cream and butter, but if you don't have a risk for cardiovascular disease, she says eating some of those is okay (I don't know if I agree with her on that though):
- Peanut butter and other nut butters, guacamole; hummus; heavy cream added to soups, cereal or tea; flax seed oil added to protein shakes (or to anything else); butter on potatoes, bread or in hot cereal.

"The New Eating Right for a Bad Gut" lists these foods: flax and olive oils, avocado; Nutra/Shakes and Great Shakes

Can you eat yogurt? A 6 oz. serving of chocolate Brown Cow yogurt has 200 calories, and it's super tasty!
Posted 3/2/2008 10:40 PM (GMT 0)
I'm not sure if you can go by my advice since I don't take any meds., just herbs and vitamins. I also have a problem with weight loss. I hate it i'm a 32 year old women and I can wear childrens clothes. It really sucks when people look at you like your anorexic. I take B12 dots, B6 100mg, C 500mg, E1000iu, folic acid, and iron. I have read taking those can help you gain weight. I would'nt take more than 500mg of vitamin C, to much can cause diarrhea. Hope that helps.
Posted 3/2/2008 11:05 PM (GMT 0)
How is your appetite, Julee? Are there healthful foods that tempt you? Can you tolerate yellow cheeses or soy cheese? If so, make toasted cheese sandwiches or pita bread pizza. What about carbs like baked potato or pasta or egg noodles? Whenever I've lost weight during flares, those items always helped me to regain lbs.-- in fact, a bit more than I needed. I would also fit in desserts like simple pound cake, tofutti, or yogurt from Brown Cow or Stonyfield Farm. Avocado & banana also add calories, but are nutritious & easy to digest. Bon appetit! / Old Hat (nearly 30 yrs with left-sided UC ... [etc.])
Posted 3/2/2008 11:26 PM (GMT 0)
My suggestion would be to eat every couple of hours too. I had some weight to regain after my last flare and that really helped.
Posted 3/2/2008 11:38 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks, everyone! These are all good suggestions. Old Hat, you are a genius! I'd forgotten about pound cake. I can always be hungry for pound cake. :)

I will experiment with yogurt. I don't think the dairy is problem; I just don't really like yogurt. But maybe I can find a flavor I like. Haven't tried Brown Cow yet.

My appetite hasn't been very good lately. Maybe I just need to spend more time finding foods I like.

Old Hat -- I eat soy cheese, American cheese, and mozzarella. I'm not a fan of other cheeses. I do eat carbs but I think I just don't eat enough of anything. I eat children's sized portions and then I get full. I'm going to take tjf's suggestion, try to eat more often and see if that helps.
Posted 3/3/2008 12:04 PM (GMT 0)
Just be careful of the Ensure shakes since they contain a lot of sugars and can aggravate the colon. I tried the Ensure drinks too when I was trying to gain weight and I couldn't figure out why I was having D 10xs a day until someone on here pointed that out. Are you in remission now Julee?
Posted 3/3/2008 1:11 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for the advice, Red. I'm not exactly in remission. I've been in a mild flare since Dec and have been keeping it under control recently pretty well. I'm still using Cortifoam to keep myself ok. But I think I'm on the road back to remission. (fingers crossed!) Some days I think I'm definitely there but it's not consistent so I don't want to jinx it by proclaiming myself well too soon!
Posted 3/3/2008 3:47 PM (GMT 0)

My husband lost close to 60 lbs over the last year with a flare and getting really sick.  His dietician suggested crackers with cold cuts on them as a snack as well as peanut butter etc.  The protein helps build your muscles up.

There's also a Soy yougurt that Giant supermarket sells that's over 200 calories and doesn't taste that bad.

But I agree with everyone else, try to eat lots of small meals.  Definitely take some time to find some foods you really like to eat.  It made the difference with my husband.

He was 165-170 and was down to 115 three weeks ago.  He's 145 right now but I think 15-20 lbs of it is water retention from the darn Prednisone.  He's also hooked up to TPN via IV for 20 hours a day which works wonders with gaining weight because he's getting 1500 calories without eating a thing.

Posted 3/3/2008 5:28 PM (GMT 0)
I know for me, once I reached remission in these past few months - I've been able to finally gain some weight. If I lose more then 5lbs, I too look anorexic and just plain ill so I couldn't afford to lose much weight. But since I've been in remission, I've managed to gain 10lbs - of course most of that is going to my tush! :) Yes, small high caloric foods thru out the day should help you. I will cross my fingers for you that you get into remission soon!
Posted 3/10/2008 6:38 PM (GMT 0)
ill agree that peanut butter is a healthy fat. i think its saturated fats thats are the good ones. they help the immune system function. Kinda different from what diet companies want to tell you, they want you to think saturated fat is bad when it really isn't. Thats one thing I've learned from trying out several different diets is that you can find somebody who will say almost every food is both good and bad.

Also coconut milk is high in saturated fats and has tons of calories. I drank a lot of it when i was on the SCD as it is also SCD safe.
Posted 3/11/2008 3:10 PM (GMT 0)
sad  I am going freaking crazy with weight loss.  I was 181 last September now I'm 167 its been steady an never ending.  My Primary doctor ran some test today to make sure I don't have anything else like diabettes but I know its the UC. 
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