To gain weight, we might think that it is enough to devour everything that falls under our mouths... Be careful, this would probably lead you not to reach your goal and more surely to put your health at risk. Discover the list of the most suitable foods to facilitate weight gain and recommended portions.
Very thin people have a reputation for being able to 'gorge' themselves on pastries or burgers without taking a gram. It is true that in cases of constitutional thinness, a 'normal' energy intake (2,000 kcal per day for women or 2,500 kcal for men) does not allow one to maintain a sufficient weight1.
However, regardless of weight, the excess of certain foods or dietary imbalance is detrimental to health. Even when you want to gain pounds, it is prudent to moderate foods (or drinks) that are very sweet, very fatty, or very salty (sodas, pastries, pastries, cold cuts, ready meals ...) and to eat, by adapting the portions, according to the benchmarks of the National Health Nutrition Program2,3:
- Bread or starchy foods at every meal
- Meat, fish, eggs, or legumes 1 to 2 times a day
- Dairy products 3 times a day
- Fruits or vegetables at least 5 times a day
- Rapeseed or walnut oil every day.
If the key foods of weight gain are the sources of protein (facilitating the recovery of muscle mass) and complex carbohydrates (energy suppliers), a good balance remains essential. Discover the list of the most suitable foods to facilitate weight gain.
Eggs
They contain ideal proteins, whose composition of amino acids (the constituents of proteins) corresponds exactly to the needs of the human organism to produce its own proteins, especially muscle proteins. Eggs can help people who are too thin (whose muscle mass is reduced for whatever reason) regain strength.
The right dose: Two eggs are equivalent to 100 g of meat or fish. You can eat up to one egg a day, at lunch, dinner, or even breakfast. In the case of hypercholesterolemia, eggs should not be removed, but limited to two to three per week. In order to digest them well, cook them in water (shell, calves, hard, poached) or with very little fat.
Meat and poultry
Their proteins, well balanced in essential amino acids, facilitate muscle mass gain when energy intake is sufficient. Meat and poultry are also among the best sources of vitamins B6 and B12 and zinc, micronutrients involved in the synthesis of body proteins.
The right dose: Count 100 to 150 g per serving. ANSES recommends favouring poultry, which is less fat, and limiting meat (beef, veal, lamb, mutton, pork, etc.) to 500 g per week. Hams provide as good protein as meats, but as with other cold cuts, their consumption should be limited to 25 g per day because of their high salt content3.
Fish
They are rich in good-quality protein and useful for the development of muscle mass. Fatty fish (herring, mackerel, sardines, salmon) are the best sources of vitamin D, which, according to recent work, is essential for the good condition of muscles: promoting the synthesis of muscle proteins and potentiating the anabolic effect of insulin (a hormone secreted after meals)4. Fish also have a good content of vitamin B6, which is involved in protein metabolism.
The right dose: ANSES recommends eating fish (100 to 150 g) twice a week, once a fatty fish and once a lean fish (cod, hake, whiting, sole, etc.), by varying the species and origins5.
Seafood
They provide proteins rich in essential amino acids, close to those of fish. They are among the best sources of vitamin B12 and zinc, the deficiency of which affects muscle synthesis. Molluscs (periwinkles, whelks, mussels ...), are particularly concentrated in magnesium, and also involved in the renewal of body proteins.
The right dose: You can plan seafood once a week, possibly as a replacement for white fish. For a portion of 100 g net, count 500 g of shellfish or 200 to 250 g of unshelled shrimp-type crustaceans. The consumption of raw seafood is not recommended for pregnant women, the elderly or sick, whose immune defenses are weakened.
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