To Add Protein To Your Diet
Protein-rich foods include meats, fish, beans, dairy products, and nuts. To boost the protein in your meals:
- Spread nut butter on toast, crackers, fruit, or vegetables.
- Add cottage cheese to fruit and tomatoes.
- Add canned tuna to casseroles and salads.
- Add shredded cheese to sauces, soups, omelets, baked potatoes, and vegetables.
- Eat yogurt with your cereal or fruit.
- Eat hard-boiled eggs in your salads.
- Eat beans and legumes , nuts, and seeds.
- Add diced or chopped meats to soups, salads, and sauces.
- Add dried milk powder or egg white powder to foods like scrambled eggs, casseroles, and milkshakes.
How Long Can You Survive With Cachexia
Cachexia: Weight loss greater than 5 percent or other symptoms and conditions consistent with the diagnostic criteria for cachexia. Refractory cachexia: Patients experiencing cachexia who are no longer responsive to cancer treatment, have a low performance score, and have a life expectancy of less than 3 months.
Weight Loss During Tuberculosis Treatment Is An Important Risk Factor For Drug
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 28 September 2010
- Tuberculosis Center, University Medical Center Groningen , PO Box 30002, 9750 RA Haren, The Netherlands
- Nick H. ten Hacken
- Affiliation:Department of Pulmonary Diseases and Tuberculosis, University Medical Center Groningen , PO Box 30001, 9700 RB Groningen, The Netherlands
- Tjip S. van der Werf
- Affiliation:Department of Pulmonary Diseases and Tuberculosis, University Medical Center Groningen , PO Box 30001, 9700 RB Groningen, The NetherlandsDepartment of Internal Medicine/Infectious Diseases, University Medical Center Groningen , PO Box 30001, 9700 RB Groningen, The Netherlands
- Richard van Altena
- Tuberculosis Center, University Medical Center Groningen , PO Box 30002, 9750 RA Haren, The Netherlands
- *
- *Corresponding author: I. Warmelink, fax +31 50 5338650
You May Like: Does Nba Youngboy Have An Std
Can Some Weight Loss With Hiv Be Healthy
According to a 2020 article, some antiretroviral medications, such as integrase strand transfer inhibitors and tenofovir alafenamide, may cause weight gain.
Another 2020 article suggests that people with HIV who receive antiretroviral treatment gain weight faster than HIV-negative people. Gaining excess weight could have negative health consequences, as having obesity increases a personâs risk for:
Unless people are underweight, it is advisable for them to aim to minimize any weight gain while taking antiretroviral medication.
If people carry excess weight or have obesity, losing a certain amount of weight may be healthy. People can talk to their care team about the safety of losing weight with HIV.
Some Causes Of Weight Loss

Some people with unintentional weight loss as a first symptom actually have one or more symptoms if they were questioned about them. Weight loss is sometimes the first symptom noticed by the person, relative or friend.
Common causes of unintentional weight loss are listed below. The list is not exhaustive.
You May Like: Can You Get Aids From Dried Blood
Who Guidelines For Nutritional Assesment In Adults With Hiv
With regard to nutrition assessment:
-
Measure weight, weight change, height, BMI, and mid upper-arm circumference .
-
Assess appetite, difficulty swallowing, nausea, diarrhea, and drug-food interaction effects.
-
Assess household food security.
With regard to malnutrition:
-
Mild to moderately malnourished adults , regardless of HIV status, should receive supplementary feeding. Usually, fortified blended foods, such as corn-soya blend , are provided, but compressed bars or biscuits and lipid-based nutrient supplements may also be used.
-
Severely malnourished adults should receive a therapeutic food, nutritionally equivalent to F100.
-
For initial treatment of severely malnourished adults aged 19 to 75 years, energy intake should be 40 kcal/kg/day for initial treatment of those aged 15-18 years, energy intake should be 50 kcal/kg/day.
With regard to dietary intake:
-
Energy intake in asymptomatic HIV infection should be increased by 10%.
-
During infection, the aim should be to reach the maximum achievable intake of 20-30% above normal intake during the recovery phase, intake should be increased to the maximum extent possible.
-
Multivitamin supplements should be started.
When Hiv Makes You Lose Weight
Unwanted weight loss related to HIV is less common than it once was, but it still happens. HIV itself — as well as related problems and treatments — can cause it. It’s more common in people with untreated or severe disease, an infection, or a high viral load, which is a high concentration of the virus in the blood.
When you have HIV, things that can cause you to lose weight include:
Also Check: Hiv Without Ejaculation
Living Longer Means Aging Naturally
Today, many people with HIV live long lives. A recent study of HIV-positive adults in Canada and the United States showed that people diagnosed with HIV at the age of 20 may live as long as any other person in these countries.
This means that hormonal symptoms including male and female baldness can occur as part of the aging process. Many men are losing hair by the age of 60.
Issues related to the disease itself may be a compounding factor, although little research exists on the topic.
Iron deficiencies can lead to hair loss in premenopausal women. Anyone losing a large amount of blood regularly can develop an iron deficiency and consequently experience hair loss.
A thyroid gland that produces an excess or deficiency of hormones can also contribute to hair shedding.
Nutrient Deficiencies And Low Calorie Intake
HIV weight loss may be due to nutritional deficiencies or not taking in enough calories, which can happen as a result of:
- neurologic disease, which may affect food intake or perception of hunger
- food insecurity due to psychosocial or financial issues
- malabsorption of nutrients due to nausea or diarrhea
- problems with the mouth or OIs making it more difficult to chew or swallow
- gastrointestinal issues, which may affect the absorption of nutrients or make people feel full more quickly
Also Check: Can Hiv Lay Dormant
Weight Gain And Pregnancy
It is normal to gain weight during pregnancy. Most women begin to lose some of this weight within a few months of having their baby. It is unclear if women who start HIV treatment during pregnancy gain more weight than other women. We dont know if women already on HIV treatment when they become pregnant gain more weight than other women.
If you have a high body weight and you plan to have a baby, you will be encouraged to lose weight before becoming pregnant. Losing weight before becoming pregnant will benefit you and your baby, reducing the risk of complications during pregnancy and at the time of birth. Women who are obese are at higher risk of developing diabetes or high blood pressure during pregnancy.
Dieting during pregnancy or while you are breastfeeding is not recommended.
Table 2 Medication Characteristics
TB, tuberculosis H, isoniazid R, rifampicin Z, pyrazinamid E, ethambutol DIH, drug-induced hepatotoxicity.
Values are significantly different: **P < 0·01 ***P < 0·001.
The number of analysed/tested patients is 192, unless otherwise specified.
Other, the anti-TB drugs schedule consists other than the sets HRZE or HZE, with the following drugs: amikacin, capreomycin, clarithromycin, clofazimine, cycloserine, doxycycline, ethambutol, isoniazid, levofloxacin, linozelid, moxifloxacin, prothionamide, pyrazinamide, rifabutin, rifampicin, thioacetazone.
§ The Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used to compare BMI and body weight doses at the start of treatment with those after interruption.
Recommended Reading: Does Cookie Johnson Have Hiv
Special Eating Needs For People Living With Hiv/aids
A person who is infected with HIV/AIDS and is not showing signs of illness does not need a specific HIV-diet. However, those infected with HIV should make every effort to adopt healthy and balanced nutrition patterns in order to meet their increased protein and energy requirements and maintain their nutritional status.
Once people with HIV/AIDS become ill they will have special needs, which are described below.
Stage : Clinical Latency

In this stage, the virus still multiplies, but at very low levels. People in this stage may not feel sick or have any symptoms. This stage is also called chronic HIV infection.
Without HIV treatment, people can stay in this stage for 10 or 15 years, but some move through this stage faster.
If you take HIV medicine every day, exactly as prescribed and get and keep an undetectable viral load, you can protect your health and have effectively no risk of transmitting HIV to your sexual partner.
But if your viral load is detectable, you can transmit HIV during this stage, even when you have no symptoms. Its important to see your health care provider regularly to get your viral load checked.
Recommended Reading: How Does Cookie Johnson Not Have Hiv
Preventing Weight Loss With Hiv
A healthy, nutritious diet is important in helping to prevent unwanted weight loss with HIV. People with HIV may need a diet that is higher in calories and protein than people without HIV. This can help prevent the loss of muscle mass.
People may want to add the following foods to their meals to increase protein intake:
- bread
- crackers
The following tips may also help people to improve appetite and prevent unwanted weight loss while living with HIV:
- doing resistance and weight lifting exercise to build and maintain muscle mass
- making food enjoyable and tasty to eat
- eating smaller meals more frequently throughout the day, rather than larger ones
- drinking high-calorie protein shakes between meals
- avoiding citrus, spicy, or very hot or cold foods if the mouth is sore
- eating bland foods for an upset stomach
People may also want to work alongside their care team to work out a diet and exercise regime to maintain a healthy weight.
Treatment for HIV weight loss may include the following:
- appetite stimulant medication
- anabolic agents, such as testosterone or human growth hormone, to increase weight gain
- anti-nausea medication
- cytokine production modulators, such as thalidomide, but only in rare cases due to side effects
If a medical professional suspects HIV medications are causing unwanted weight loss or gain, they may suggest a change in medication.
If people have lipodystrophy, they can discuss treatment options with a doctor. Treatments for this may include:
Basic Steps Towards Weight Loss
If you are overweight or obese there are some basic steps that you can follow to lose weight. These steps are the same for everyone, regardless of age or HIV status.
drug interaction
A risky combination of drugs, when drug A interferes with the functioning of drug B. Blood levels of the drug may be lowered or raised, potentially interfering with effectiveness or making side-effects worse. Also known as a drug-drug interaction.
To get started, it will help you to know how much you are eating and how physically active you are in an average week. Keep a food and activity diary for a week.
You can download apps that can help track activity. Most smart phones come with activity monitors pre-loaded. Alternatively, you can wear an inexpensive pedometer to record how far you walk each day.
Get a weight loss plan. You can download a 12-week weight loss guide from the NHS website. The plan is designed to help you lose weight at a safe rate of 0.5kg to 1kg each week by sticking to a daily calorie allowance.
Limit your calorie intake. For most taller people, this means sticking to a calorie limit of no more than 1900kcal a day, and 1400kcal for most shorter people. As we are all different, ideally see your HIV dietitian to have your own target calculated. A very low calorie diet should only be attempted after consultation with an HIV dietitian.Remember that some antiretroviral drugs need to be taken with food. Check which drugs need to be taken with food here.
Also Check: Walgreens At Home Hiv Test
How Do I Keep From Losing Weight
Diet and Nutrition
Weight loss can be a common problem for people with relatively advanced stages of HIV infection, and it should be taken very seriously. It usually improves with effective antiretroviral therapy . Losing weight can be dangerous because it makes it harder for your body to fight infections and to get well after you’re sick.
People with advanced HIV often do not eat enough because:
- HIV may reduce your appetite, make food taste bad, and prevent the body from absorbing food in the right way. Some HIV medicines may also cause these symptoms .
- symptoms like a sore mouth, nausea, and vomiting make it difficult to eat
- fatigue from HIV or medicines may make it hard to prepare food and eat regularly
To keep your weight up, you will need to take in more protein and calories. What follows are ways to do that.
Why Do Hiv Patients Lose Weight
July 3, 2011, shiela,
Why Do HIV Patients Lose Weight?
HIV or human immunodeficiency virus is a dangerous infection because it can lead to AIDS. HIV patients often suffer from flu, fever, headache, or fatigue. By suffering these symptoms, patients might experience lower resistance and weak immune system.
If a person suffers from HIV, the infection progresses depending on the complication and the kind of infection. One thing is obvious with HIV patients. They lose weight. It is reported that people with HIV might lose 10 percent of the total weight and gaining the normal weight is difficult to do. HIV patients lose weight because their immune system is frail. They also have no appetite to eat. If a person doesnt have the appetite to eat, then not enough nutrition will be taken in by the body. Food is important to achieve good health. The nutrients from the food supply energy, protein, and vitamins needed by our blood. A person suffering from HIV doesnt usually eat complete meal so this will make them weak and might suffer from other disease. They dont have enough nutrients to combat the diseases and other infections. HIV patients may also suffer from diarrhea which is also one main reason of weight loss.
HIV patients must be considered as ordinary people who also want to live and stay happy. They must not be adjudged as dirt of the society. They need food and basic needs just what other ordinary people need.
Recommended Reading: Can You Get Hiv From Dried Blood
Arvs Vs Weight Loss For Hiv/aids Treatment
In the late 1990s, researchers studying patients with HIV/Aids discovered that certain complex metabolic changes occurred in individuals on antiretroviral therapy.
In particular, researchers became aware that these patients experienced a redistribution of their fat stores and tended to develop raised blood fat levels and raised cholesterol levels.
Whereas the most important dietary problem in people living with HIV/Aids, who aren’t on ARVs, is physical wasting or weight loss, and the first concern is to provide these patients with adequate supplies of energy, those patients who do receive ARVs now tend to develop a different spectrum of nutritional problems.
LipodystrophyOne of the most characteristic features of this change in metabolic requirements is so-called lipodystrophy, which includes wasting of the limbs and redistribution of fat into the abdominal area.
In one study with 154 male patients receiving ARVs , the researchers found that the fat contents of the patients’ thighs were significantly reduced, while the fat depots in their abdominal areas were increased.
These researchers described three major types of fat distribution abnormalities in HIV patients receiving active ARV therapy, namely:
- fat depletion or lipodystrophy syndrome, which may be related to the use of the ARV stavudine
- a mixed fat redistribution syndrome
- a subcutaneous adiposity syndrome , which may be associated with increased energy intake.
R75 per month
What Is Hiv Weight Loss
HIV weight loss, sometimes called HIV wasting syndrome, is an unplanned weight loss of more than 10 percent of body weight with either diarrhea or weakness and fever that lasts more than 30 days.
This type of weight loss often occurs with more advanced HIV. Lean body mass tends to be lost, but weight loss may be body fat as well.
While antiretroviral therapies have helped lower rates of this weight loss, estimates from 2016 suggested that between 14 and 38 percent of people with HIV will experience it.
The risk of death does increase with each 1 percent increase in weight loss from baseline weight in people living with HIV. Moreover, this risk rises by 11 percent with each 1 percent increase in weight loss from the prior visit.
HIV weight loss can result from a mix of factors such as:
Don’t Miss: What Is The Average Life Expectancy Of Hiv Patients
To Add Calories To Your Diet
The best way to increase calories is to add extra fat and carbohydrates to your meals.
Fats are more concentrated sources of calories. Add moderate amounts of the following to your meals:
- butter, sour cream, cream cheese, peanut butter
- sour cream, cream cheese, grated cheese
- avocados, olives, salad dressing
Increase Vitamin And Mineral Intake

Vitamins and minerals are essential to keep healthy. They protect against opportunistic infection by ensuring that the lining of skin, lungs and gut remain healthy and that the immune system functions properly. Of special importance are vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, certain B-group vitamins and minerals such as selenium, zinc and iron. A mixed diet as recommended in Chapter three should provide enough of these vitamins and minerals. Some background information on micronutrients, their nutritional role and food sources is provided in Annex 3.
Vitamin A is important to keep the lining of skin, lungs and gut healthy. Vitamin A deficiency increases the severity of diseases such as diarrhoea while infection will increase the loss of vitamin A from the body. Good vitamin A sources are dark green, yellow, orange and red vegetables and fruit. These include spinach, pumpkin, cassava leaves, green peppers, squash, carrots, amaranth, yellow peaches, apricots, papaya and mangoes. Vitamin A is also contained in red palm oil, yellow maize, orange and yellow sweet potatoes, egg yolks and liver.
Vitamin C helps to protect the body from infection and aids in recovery. It is found particularly in citrus fruits such as oranges, grapefruit, lemons and mandarins. Guavas, mangoes, tomatoes and potatoes are also good sources of vitamin C.
Vitamin E protects cells and aids resistance to infection. Foods containing vitamin E are green leafy vegetables, vegetable oils, peanuts and egg yolks.
Recommended Reading: Does Nba Youngboy Have Hiv