I am 34 years old, 6 feet 3 inches tall, I weigh 165 pounds, and I have type 2 diabetes. I eat more food than anyone I know, but can’t seem to gain any weight no matter what I do. I am frustrated, and I am trying to keep my numbers in check, but I’m always being hungry. What can I do to put weight on without fouling my blood sugar levels?

You don’t say what medications are being used to manage your diabetes, what your blood sugar control and hemoglobin A1c are currently, or how your diagnosis of type 2 diabetes was reached, but you may wish to seek those answers from your physician/diabetes team. It is possible that you are in a slow development of Late-onset Autoimmune Diabetes of Adulthood (LADA) and misclassification at this stage can be common. It would also be wise to rule out further medical reasons for your difficulty with weight maintenance, such as thyroid disease.

Provided that all the medical reasons for weight loss have been investigated, and that your overall blood sugar management is good, the next step ideally should be individual consultation with a dietitian who is a Certified Diabetes Educator (CDE). This healthcare professional can work closely with you to develop a nutritional therapy plan addressing both your desire to gain weight and manage your blood sugars. If you do not currently do so, you will wish to learn carbohydrate counting. This will allow you to balance your insulin or medication dosages based on the amount and type of carbohydrates ingested at each meal/snack, as well as to correct for high or low blood sugars with either insulin/medication or food changes. A dietitian can help you find the appropriate balance of proteins, carbohydrates, and heart healthy fats at the appropriate caloric intake for you!

DMW