Eating like a pig

[Ihavehope]

Since I was diagnosed last month I been eating ALOT

Gained like 15 lbs already . I cant stop eating. I am an emotional eater. I hear alot of things about cutting down fat and sugar in take when on meds. Should i really stop eating so much? I start meds next week.

[Miss Philicia]

Some people eat a lot when they're depressed.  Maybe that's it.  Gaining 15 lbs. in a month is kind of quick, no?

[Queen Tokelove]

Damn, 15lbs in a month, you need to slow down, that can't be good. Are you eating healthy when you eat? I would talk to your doctor about this.

[Merlin]

The body needs more food when it's battling the virus, so you may expereince hunger more often like I do. I still eat alot and gained about 6 kg over one year, but still dun show. If you are eating without being hungry, then it's emotional and that's always a problem with or without a condition. If u cannot stop, then it's a good idea to eat healthy.

[egello]

wait,,, I just gained 22 lb this month, back to my natural weight, and I feel that kind of quick gain might be causing some problem, no?

[allopathicholistic]

Since I was diagnosed last month I been eating ALOT

Gained like 15 lbs already . I cant stop eating. I am an emotional eater. I hear alot of things about cutting down fat and sugar in take when on meds. Should i really stop eating so much? I start meds next week.

Hi IHH - You asked about fat & sugar. I'm no expert but to my knowledge there are good fats and bad fats. Good ones include olive oil, avocado. Bad ones are like Ruffles, Doritos, McDonalds, Wendy's. You can Google or Wiki trans fats In my mind, white sugar is detrimental to health and I know some people will think that's an extreme thing to say. Hey, that's just me. If you watch these videos from last summer http://forums.poz.com/index.php?topic=3370.0 you might come to the conclusion that we should never take our meds with soda! 

[Miss Philicia]

I believe Wendy's has stated that they will be eliminating trans fats.

[fondeveau]

Gee, whiz!  I was so happy before I was diagnosed.  I was losing weight and feeling so trim and dapper!  How silly I felt when the doctor told me my sudden ability lose weight was caused by um...an infection...er...um... HIV!  Anywho, one week on Atripla and suddenly I have a tremendous appetite and feel absolutely famished whenever more than 3 hours passed without eating.  I called my ID specialist.  He was so happy for me!  Of course, he directed my appetites into healthier veins.  So now I buy a wide variety of fruits and keep big bowls at the office and home.  Bananas, oranges, apples, pears, pomegranates (sp?), whatever I can find.  Of course, I then quit smoking so have been eating more than I should anyway.  My advice is not to stop eating, but to channel those appetites into the fruits and veggies.

[Queen Tokelove]

My problem is the opposite. I don't eat much. I have to smoke weed in order to eat. My primary doc wants me to start megace but thinks it will clash with my depo shots. I got a shot today and asked the nurse, if I could speak to my gyn about this. Then she says, " Megace, that's some strong stuff". Why does he want you on that? I disclosed my status to her and her whole attitude changed. Now to feel slighted by the average Joe is one thing but to be slighted by someone in the medical profession is another...I don't see disclosure happening no time soon with me.

[Miss Philicia]

I've gone through odd phases, and I suspect it really must be my medication.  It was around '98 or ''99 that my roommate and I started to notice that I never seemed to finish meals, or ever have a 2nd helping.  All portions became smaller and I always left more than just a little on my plate, sometimes half the meal.  And like I've said before I then had two separate major weight losses in '00 and '02 so that's not surprising.

Now for some reason in the past 14 months it's been entirely different.  I'm CONSTANTLY hungry.  I'd say it's the massive improvement with fuzeon, but that doesn't fit the time period as I've only been on it since May.  I wonder if it began when they put me on Truvada.  I forget what they took me off of to put me on that, but I was still on Kaletra and Invirase.

It's quite odd, and quite the change.

[Miss Philicia]

I can't believe I'm baking Chicken Kiev at 4 am.  So fucking retarded, but I'm hungry again and baby carrots will not fill me up.

Mind you, I had a massive steak for dinner about six hours ago too.

[Merlin]

My hunger's been slightly tapered these days although I still eat alot. At the beginning when my constant craving was ravishing me, I decided to try something and went to the extreme of drinking 50ml of coconut oil daily to see if it made me slow down. Apparently, it did disrupt the hunger but made me wanna puke too each time I drank VCO. So I decided to go back to real food instead, anytime. 

I try to eat healthy but will not stop at ice cream and pastries. I used to avoid chicken skin and stick with lean and breast meat, but due to my slight facial lipoatrophy (not on meds yet), I figured I can use any fat I can digest. Obviously, most went to my gut (I didn't exercise much too anyways..lolx) but I think I did notice an extremely slight improvement in my facial appearance. Maybe there are many factors, but I'll keep eating at whatever it takes. Yum!

[sweetasmeli]

I believe it depends on what you eat and when you eat it, rather than the amounts.

I have days when I can eat all day, and I mean ALL DAY. Sometimes I wonder why I'm not as big as a house! But, saying that, I know that most of the stuff I'm eating is good for me. Plus I drink loads of water throughout the day and take supplements daily too.

I'm also more of a 'grazer', in the sense that I like to eat little and often. Although I do have my moments where I can polish off a whole wokful of stirfried veggies with vermacelli all to myself!

My nemesis is exercise. Especially during the winter months (although any excuse for me!). I know how essential regular exercise is for good health but I just can't seem to get my lazy tushy into a routine with that. Ach well, I'm getting there. Managing to make it down and up from the village most days. It's a start...

What folk have said about depression and appetite is true. Plus the effects of medication (though I can't speak from experience on that score). But, whatever the cause of 'overeating' or 'constant eating' or 'binge-eating' et al, I still think the key - aside from obviously addressing the cause of course - is to be aware of what you choose to munch.

Yeia kai hara! (health and happiness)
Melia