# Eating enough food.



## One Fine Day (Sep 14, 2009)

Over the past year I have lost some weight. Not lots, but enough for some friends and family to notice – and as someone who is quite thin anyway (male, approx 155-160 lbs and 6ft 2 tall) then this is something I would like to reverse.However, I have struggled to know how to do this with my IBS. Like many with IBS I struggle to eat fatty food and when I am feeling bad can struggle to eat anything much beyond rice and jacket potatoes.Anyway, the other day I thought it would be interesting to make a note of what I was eating and add up the calories (and amount of protein, fat and carbohydrates) using the information on the side of all the food packets. And the results have slightly surprised me.According to the RDA (Recommended Daily Amounts) here in the UK, I (as a male) should be eating 2,500 kcalories per day. The RDA for Carbohydrates is 300g, for Protein is 55g and for Fat is 95g. I also found out that Fat gives apparently 9 kcal/g. Carbohydrate and protein are 4 kcal/g.So, according to the above RDA's an average male should be getting the following calories from each of the sources:-Carbohydrates (4*300) = 1,200 kcalFat (9*95) = 855 kcalProtein (4*55) = 220 kcal.(Adding these together, for some reason only adds to 2,275kcal, not 2,500kcal – not quite sure why) The things that surprised me based on these numbers and my 3 day food diary have been:-1/ There is actually quite a lot of protein in rice and bread – such that even with only a small serving of meat during the day I was still able to reach the 55g protein target through eating a lot of rice, potato and bread.This is interesting to me as I have thought my weight loss was down to not eating enough protein. I guess this was due to the fact that I know that weightlifters etc who want to put on weight take protein supplements. Also I know that I eat a lot less meat now than I used to because I struggle to tolerate it. The result is that up until now I have thought the only way to put on weight was by finding a way to eat more protein. So this exercise has been interesting as it suggests that my diet is not as lacking in protein as I had previously imagined.2 Eating enough calories is difficult on a low-fat diet ! Rather than eating 95g of fat per day – I worked out I have been eating about 30-40g per day because like many with IBS I struggle to eat fatty foods. But this means I miss out on around 585kcal per day (9*65). So, unless I start to eat more fat, then to compensate for this loss of calories from fat I will have to earn these calories from extra protein or carbohydrates. This means an extra 146g (585/4) of either protein or carbohydrate over and above the RDA levels recommended above. 3 I should therefore not feel guilty about eating lots of carbohydrates. I often eat a bowl of rice for breakfast. For me it is a lifesaver food that seems to bind things together when everything else can seem to do the opposite. However, I have tended to think of this as a bit abnormal(!) and therefore tended to try not to each too much rice and attempt to find other things to eat. However, if I am going to need to eat my way through 400g per day of carbohydrates per day then this changes my mindset – rather than being embarassed at the fact I can often only seem to be eating only rice, potato and bread – I instead need to partly embrace it if I am to have any hope of meeting the 2,500kcal target on a daily basis. To get 400g of carbs per day is equivalent to eating 2 or 3 large portions of rice per day plus 2 jacket potatoes per day plus 5 slices of bread per day. Anyway, I know there is more to food than just meeting the calorie target e.g. the need for nutrients/vitamins and issues over blood sugar etc – but I feel this little exercise has proven quite an eye-opener for me. Basically, my weight loss has not been specifically due to a lack of protein over the past year. Rather, I just haven't been eating enough full stop!Looking ahead, rather than worry about needing to eat more of the things I struggle to eat (fats/many proteins), I will look to eat more of those things I can tolerate (which are mostly carbs). As these also include quite a bit of protein anyway then I will also stop worrying so much about needing a large portion of meat or fish with my evening meal each day. Instead I will just seek to add a number of smaller portions of meat/fish etc each day to predominantly carb based meals. Hopefully I will be more likely to tolerate these smaller portions of protein than I often am of the larger portions. Eating protein (and maybe fats) little and often should get me above the protein RDA without the need for eating large fatty steaks once a day. Finally, the odd cake or pastry (which I can usually tolerate ok) would probably also help me reach my calorie target – as they are certainly calorie rich !Anyway, this has got a bit long. I don't particularly have any questions to ask, it's been more a thinking aloud post. As I found the results quite revealing myself I thought it may be useful to post for some others in a similar position (add up your calories!). However, I would be happy for any comments – either holes in my logic – or useful suggestions on how others get enough calories each day despite their food intolerances.


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## BQ (May 22, 2000)

Well Liquid Nutrition drinks like Ensure can always help. Here I think over there by you they have one called "Build Up"... I found a link:http://www.christie.nhs.uk/patients/bookle...ult.aspx#drinksThose kind of drinks can help you get more calories without wrecking your gut. Why not ask your Dr about them (like if he thinks you may need them) and or give one a try??


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## Patman75 (Mar 9, 2008)

There are healthy fats and unhealthy fats.Try these healthy fats out a little at a time and see if you can tolerate them.Avacodoes, flax seed oil, oilve oil, olives, coconut oil (awesome stuff), butter, oil blend called Udo's oil.Nuts are high in protien and fat. They are a little harder to digest. Try a little at a time. Try nuts that are raw and unsalted. Eggs are great as well.


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## HenryD (Mar 18, 2010)

BQ said:


> Well Liquid Nutrition drinks like Ensure can always help. Here I think over there by you they have one called "Build Up"... I found a link:http://www.christie.nhs.uk/patients/bookle...ult.aspx#drinksThose kind of drinks can help you get more calories without wrecking your gut. Why not ask your Dr about them (like if he thinks you may need them) and or give one a try??


Wow, great idea. Are these drinks available as prescription only?


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

Here I can buy them over the counter at every pharmacy and grocery store I go to.


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## Patman75 (Mar 9, 2008)

HenryD said:


> Wow, great idea. Are these drinks available as prescription only?


I use this one as a meal replacement or snack.http://www.holistichealthshoppe.com/astragalus.php?id=6


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