Dietitian for Weight Gain

Last Updated on 8 December 2024 by Brisbane Livewell Clinic

There’s a lot of focus on how to lose weight, but it’s important to highlight that there are those who are struggling to gain any weight at all. People may be underweight due to a number of reasons including:

Poor appetite
Anxiety
Peer Pressure and Social
Media Influences
Taste changes
Disinterest in food
Sensory Issues
Feelings of nausea, frequent bowel movements or vomiting
Frequent high intensity exercise without adequate energy intake to balance
Genetics
History of disordered eating
Medical conditions such as a recent injury or surgery (especially in the elderly) involving an extended stay in hospital or modifications to their digestive system, cancer and some lung conditions just to name a few
Interference by Medication (for example, many medicines for ADHD can cause diminished appetite)

To a lot of people, being thin sounds great! But for people who are finding it difficult to eat enough and gain weight, they can find themselves at risk of more frequent infections, poor energy, muscle wastage and lack of strength, sensitivity to the cold, higher risk of falls and of not meeting nutritional needs.

Low weight can become a serious medical issue, and it’s important that you consult your GP and Specialists as soon as possible.

It can be very frustrating trying to figure out how to gain weight on your own. The good news is that here, at Brisbane Livewell Clinic, our Dietitian for Weight Gain is well equipped to support those wishing to gain weight to improve their health and wellbeing.

How Can a Dietitian for Weight Gain Help Me?

When you see our Dietitian for Weight Gain, they can help by myth-busting the following ideas to give you confidence in knowing what food is right for you:

All I need to do is eat junk food to gain weight.
I can’t gain weight as I can’t possibly eat any more than I am right now.
Protein shakes and supplements are needed to gain muscle.

Our Dietitian for Weight Gain also provides education, resources and support in how to eat to gain weight and improve your general nutrition which will provide you with the energy to keep up with your everyday tasks.

Topics often discussed include:

Ideas to help increase your nutritional intake.
Optimal meal and snack timing.
Inclusion of foods to provide additional energy (Kcal) and protein required for weight gain.
Ways to fortify usual foods eaten with added nutritional value.
Beneficial snack options.
Balancing exercise with food intake.
Appropriate weight goals.
How to use food quality vs quantity to help meet nutritional requirements (i.e. nutrient dense wholefoods vs empty calorie junk foods).
When best to drink fluids in relation to meals.
Eating pre and post exercise to maximise muscle repair.
The use of nutritional supplements in meeting nutrition requirements.
Nutritional and lifestyle management of related symptoms (i.e. taste change, poor appetite, aversions to smells, reflux, sensory issues, gag reflex issues and dumping syndrome).
Label reading and cooking skills.
Handy resources including printed information and recipes.

What’s Involved in Seeing a Dietitian for Weight Gain?

When you see our Dietitian for Weight Gain, you will complete a pre-appointment questionnaire. This helps our Dietitian to understand your needs and personal goals.

An open and confidential discussion around your relevant social, medical and weight background, current medications, recent pathology results, clinical symptoms, usual foods and drinks eaten, timings of meals, eating behaviours, sensory challengees, food aversions, and physical activity levels allows us to assess your current health situation.

Our Dietitian may include a malnutrition screening assessment. This considers your weight history, evidence of muscle wastage, clinical symptoms (including bowel movements and presence of nausea/vomiting) and ability to complete daily tasks to determine level of risk of malnourishment.

Our Dietitian will be able to answer nutrition-related queries and provide explanations of the relationship between weight, exercise and diet so you understand your condition better and why changes may be necessary.

You will receive tailored nutrition education to equip you with the skills and confidence to make your own educated choices. Our Dietitian will discuss various nutrition strategies so that you can set achievable and realistic goals with ongoing support and motivation to make changes for the long term.

Our Dietitian will also be able to recommend tools to keep you accountable to your goals – i.e. food diaries, food logging apps, photo journals of foods eaten.

How Often Will I Need To See A Dietitian for Weight Gain?

After the initial appointment with our Dietitian for Weight Gain, follow-up consults will usually be encouraged every 2-4 weeks. This allows us to ensure you have been able to implement any strategies, address any obstacles that may have arisen and provide support and accountability while making diet and lifestyle changes. Subsequent consultations are then scheduled as often as people find necessary for ongoing support.

At any time, you can call our friendly Reception staff to book a follow-up consultation.