What's the best, effective way to gain weight and increase hunger? I'm very worried about my sick friend.

Question

My friend is an ex-heroin addict, plus his ex girlfriend just died around his birthday from a heroin overdose, so he barely eats. He looks pale, extremely anorexic (skinny) and insanely sick. He's a very good friend and he's a genuinely good hearted person which is rare to find, and I don't want to lose him. He's always like "nah I'm not hungry" and he never finishes his plate. Me and one of my best friends are trying to help him gain weight. Any advice?? What are some small portion foods that have a large amount of fat?? Or any treatments that will make him hungry? (Besides marijuana because that doesn't make him hungry.) And he won't go to the doctor so that's out of the question as well.

Answer 1

Perhaps plenty of nuts might help but not almonds as they are not fattening unless you eat bucketloads.

Answer 2

"The Baconator" from Wendy's.

Answer 3

I would offer this. Watch him. As someone else said, he is depressed. He may be at the brink of suicide. Watch for signs. If he becomes so emaciated, medical intervention will be mandated by the court, if necessary.

Answer 4

Slim fast shakes (the kind WITH the sugar) are an excellent supplement to meals. You can practically live off the stuff. Keep in mind that slim fast doesn't make you lose weight. It will actually make you gain weight if taken in between or with meals. There are other supplements that have more calories, but they don't tend to taste as good as the slim fast. Sports shakes have a lot of calories/protein/vitamins too.

Answer 5

Milkshakes.  If anything will put on the weight, it is ice cream.

Answer 6

I wish I could tell you about a special pill that could make him all better... but unfortunately, he's dealing with a lot of psychological issues that he hasn't overcome (and there's no pill natural or otherwise that can increase hunger). He needs to work the emotional issues out before he can work out the physical issues and it sounds like he needs more help than you can offer.

My best suggestion is to try to get him to talk to a counselor... offer to go with him if it would help. You might want to talk to someone that can help work out his eating issues to see if they can give you any ideas of how to help him a little better. He needs to want to help himself before he will get any help from anyone else... you can't force him to eat, after all.

Just giving/getting him an antidepressant won't help with the underlying problem and some of the antidepressant medications can actually make it worse (some have side effects of suicidal thoughts).

Once he's willing to eat, talking to a dietitian will be the safest way to help him gain the weight back... that way, he can work with them to set up a meal plan and exercise regiment to help him gain weight safely and most effectively.

Also, to note, the WORST way to gain weight is just to eat more... it's moreso eating the right things to gain the weight to make sure you're getting more of the healthy stuff. Good luck to both of you!

Answer 7

He is depressed, give it time and he will begin to feel better...take him for a walk to get his mind off things and also, make sure he gets enough sleep...in his case taking Effexior (anti-depressant) for a while might help...

Answer 8

I am really sorry to hear about your struggles to keep a friend alive and healthy. I would offer some of my fat but seriously. Try taking him to a carnival or fair. Fair food is the best and no one can pass that up. Also, maybe try cooking for him or get him interested in learning to cook. If he knows that you put so much time and effort into making him something, maybe he'll feel obligated to eat it and rate it for you. I wish you the best of luck and don't give up.