2 months ago
I am underweight my current weight is 41 kg and i am 18 years old and my height is 5’6 . How can i gain my weight?
2 months ago
Dear Sukhmanpreet, Thank you for the question.
Adolescence or teen age is a critical period of our lives in which our body undergoes rapid changes, growth and development. It is very essential to consume a healthy balanced diet with adequate amount of protein and other nutrients such as calcium, iron, vitamin D etc., which will help support growth, development, pubertal changes and strong bones.
An adolescent girl should take enough calcium rich foods in her diet to support the increase of bone density and maintain healthy strong bones. Some of the calcium sources include milk, cheese, paneer, Ragi, curd, yogurt.
Reference ideal body weight and height for 18-year-old female can be considered as 48.1-59.5kg and 155.3-166.9cm heigh
According to your mentioned weight you seem to be outside the reference range.
The causes of underweight or unintended weight loss can be due to genetics, inadequate food intake, stress, hormonal imbalance, malabsorption or other underlying health condition.
In any weight management programme, it is very essential to consume a healthy diversified balanced diet with few dietary modifications and regular physical activity. For weight gain it is essential to focus on your daily balanced diet with high calorie, high protein, and regular meals. With any weight gain diet, changes take time to reflect as your body requires sufficient time to adapt to the changes in order to show results.
A high calorie and high protein diet is recommended for weight gain. High protein foods give a feeling of satiety, delay gastric emptying, and help in maintain lean body or muscle mass. Daily protein requirement should ideally be followed as 0.8-1g per kg body weight. You can include non-vegetarian sources of protein such as chicken, eggs, fish, prawns etc and vegetarian sources Milk & milk products like paneer, Legumes, lentils, beans (chickpeas, kidney, mung, pinto etc.), peas (green, split, etc.), soybeans (and products made from soy: tofu, tempeh, etc.), peanuts, almonds, pistachios, cashews, walnuts, hazelnuts, pecans, hemp seeds, squash and pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, flax seeds, sesame seeds, chia seeds as a part of your daily balanced diet
Here are a few general Dietary guidelines to be considered for weight gain
For a customised and personalised meal plan for specific conditions, please contact your Health care professional.
Hope we have answered your query.
Wishing you a great day ahead