DR Says To Eat 1200/day

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MaxineMarieM
MaxineMarieM Posts: 50 Member
in Getting Started
HI All

I just started a medication that's side effect is gaining weight. My Dr advised me to exercise everyday and named specific exercises to burn calories and build muscles. The problem is she told me to only eat 1200 calories a day instead of what MFP says I should eat. I have done the research on this medication and you do gain weight because it lowers your metabolism and for some other scientific reason I do not really understand. I may be on this medication for life and to be honest I feeling good so for now I do not want to stop taking it.

Would love to hear any recommendations or thoughts you have.

Thanks
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Replies

  • kk_140
    kk_140 Posts: 518 Member
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    Generally I go with "the doctor knows best" as an opinion. But perhaps you should seek a second opinion just for some ease of mind.
  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,658 Member
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    "Listen to your doctor" would be at the top of the list.
  • crfeen
    crfeen Posts: 85 Member
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    Definitely listen to your doctor :) There is a reason they told you that.
  • sheedy17
    sheedy17 Posts: 128
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    id listen to a doctor over a APP. I would never doubt a doctor when giving advise in his profession but thats me
  • Momjogger
    Momjogger Posts: 750 Member
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    I think that doctors in general know very little about nutrition and metabolism unless they specialize. I would request a specialist consult and I think if you track how much you currently eat and then reduce by a couple hundred calories while exercizing, that should help. Just saying to eat 1200 to maintain seems crazy to me. I would think over time as a maintenance plan that would damage your metabolism more. I hope things work out for you.
  • navyrigger46
    navyrigger46 Posts: 1,301 Member
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    Be wary OP, be wary. Doctors are not the best sources for nutrition information, and if this doctor thinks you can build muscle on 1200 a day then I would take her nutrition advice with a whole shaker full of salt. That's me though, I don't take medical advice from my finance guy, and I wouldn't take dietary advice from a medical doctor just because they graduated med school, lot's of people graduate med school, it doesn't mean they know jack about nutrition.

    Rigger
  • bkthandler
    bkthandler Posts: 247 Member
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    Try is for a week or so if you are not happy/don't feel your best ask for a referral to a dietician or a specialist.
  • HeidiCooksSupper
    HeidiCooksSupper Posts: 3,831 Member
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    Physicians often know very little about diet. Sometimes the 1200 calorie number is a knee-jerk response with little to back it up. Your doctor is hoping that you will do what is necessary to avoid weight gain. That's good. As a long-time MFP member, you already know how to avoid weight gain and how to regulate your eating and exercise to control your weight. So, it sounds to me like you need to educate your doctor. You will not know if this medicine causes YOU to gain weight until it does. If it does, you know how to lose that weight through careful adjustment of your daily caloric intake and exercise.

    Happily, my physician is often glad to have me show him some piece of information that serves to increase his knowledge. They are often "pedaling as fast as they can" and spend more time trying to keep up with the serious diseases they must treat than keeping up with the ins and outs of diet and nutrition. I would love to SWAT the cardiologist's office that gave my husband a "diet" that is just a list of what I recognize as random sentences pulled from a variety of diet sources with no coordination. I'm happy to say those "diet instructions" are no longer posted in the kitchen as he came to realize how spotty and partial the information was and what he needed to learn to be healthy.

    So, yes, you should listen to your doctor but do not assume that s/he is always better informed on health issues than you are. They are too busy dealing with disease to spend much time knowing the latest about health.
  • LoraleiDean
    LoraleiDean Posts: 100
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    I would suggest that you follow your doctor's advice.
    I'm also on medications that have increased my weight, even though I eat reasonable portion sizes of healthy foods (not a lot of junk), and it seems to be a losing battle even including exercise.
    The calculations used in this website are for the average person, not those of us who have health issues. We need to do a bit more "finagling" to achieve what we want.
  • MSeel1984
    MSeel1984 Posts: 2,297 Member
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    I think that doctors in general know very little about nutrition and metabolism unless they specialize. I would request a specialist consult and I think if you track how much you currently eat and then reduce by a couple hundred calories while exercizing, that should help. Just saying to eat 1200 to maintain seems crazy to me. I would think over time as a maintenance plan that would damage your metabolism more. I hope things work out for you.

    ^this. Ask for a referral to a specialist as well as a registered dietitian.
  • beautifulwarrior18
    beautifulwarrior18 Posts: 914 Member
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    I'd talk to a dietician. Doctors don't know **** about nutrition.
  • FindingAmy77
    FindingAmy77 Posts: 1,266 Member
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    well I am sure the dr thinks that is best but I would consult an actual nutritionist for some real advice. It is your right to ask what nutritional education and training your doctor has completed. Most only do a semester or two of nutritional training/studies while in medical school. This is a fact. The standard recommendation when trying to lose weight is eat 1200 but they are not taking into consideration the calories you may burn with exercise. If you burn calories with exercise while eating at 1200 then your actual deficit is going to be less than 1200 and that is not good for you. Just ask more questions and do your research. That is what I would do.
  • grimendale
    grimendale Posts: 2,154 Member
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    If it seems low, talk to a registered dietician (not a nutritionist). Dieticians have medical training and are licensed. I could hang a sign outside my door saying I'm a nutritionist. Doctors are often uninformed on nutrition, so a second opinion is not a bad idea.
  • katematt313
    katematt313 Posts: 624 Member
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    The doctor knows best :)

    1200 calories per day is completely doable. Just use MFP to plan ahead what you will eat for the next day, to make sure you get your protein in and stay within 1200 calories.

    I would give it a try per your MD's recommendations, and see what happens in the next month or so. It may need to be adjusted depending on whether you gain, lose or maintain weight.
  • Buddhasmiracle
    Buddhasmiracle Posts: 925 Member
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    I think that doctors in general know very little about nutrition and metabolism unless they specialize. I would request a specialist consult and I think if you track how much you currently eat and then reduce by a couple hundred calories while exercizing, that should help. Just saying to eat 1200 to maintain seems crazy to me. I would think over time as a maintenance plan that would damage your metabolism more. I hope things work out for you.

    ^this. Ask for a referral to a specialist as well as a registered dietitian.

    Definately this.
    A registered dietitian (not a nutritionist) is an excellent resource and well worth the out of pocket expenses if your insurance doesn't cover t he consult.
  • ShannonMpls
    ShannonMpls Posts: 1,936 Member
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    I'd follow your doctor's advice. If you find after 2-3 weeks that it's unworkable in your life - you are hungry and irritable, losing too much, etc - ask for a referral to a dietitian for help with food management.
  • LambrettaVVespa
    LambrettaVVespa Posts: 26 Member
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    1. Doctors aren't always right. You should definitely take professional medical advice over advice from somebody over the internet. However, they can occassionally get things wrong. I've been given things that I shouldn't be given (like Propanalol when I have asthma, which is generally a no-no, and caused a panic when I told my psychiatrist).

    2. See a dietician. They have more specialised training in nutrition and weight loss/maintenance.

    3. My friend is a recently qualified doctor and even he admits that he doesn't know much about nutrition and that he'd advise me to see a dietician instead of relying on General Practitioners.

    4. You should see if the medication causes weight gain in your own personal situation. I've often been on medications which are known to commonly cause weight gain (equal to or more than 1 in 10 people) and haven't experienced any weight gain at all. Not all patients are the same, which some doctors tend not to remember. It's easy to look at a list of side effects and freak ("coma or death" was one of the ones that got my attention) but they don't apply to all.

    Don't take my advice over a doctor though, or any of anyone's advice that isn't qualified. However, do take our advice about seeing a specialist dietician.
  • MityMax96
    MityMax96 Posts: 5,778 Member
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    Listen to doctor.

    But also do due diligence on your part.....since it is your body and not the doctors.

    Track your food and calories and see how your body responds.
  • KCNutritionCoach
    KCNutritionCoach Posts: 10 Member
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    See a registered dietitian. Doctors a lot of times just give a random calorie amount without actually doing the correct calculations and assessments.
  • fannyfrost
    fannyfrost Posts: 756 Member
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    Listen to your Dr, but Drs are not nutritionists. I would see if your medical plan would cover a nutritionist or diet expert under the circumstances they actually might.

    A second opinion is always good. MFP is an application, not sure it always knows.

    It may even be worth it to pay for at least a consultation with a nutritionist, but even nutritionists go for fads. Make sure to check the credentials.

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