Stopped Drinking. I Am Underweight And Have Loss Of Appetite. Which Doctor Should I Consult?

Posted on Tue, 16 Apr 2013

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 Answered on

Tue, 7 May 2013 Last reviewed on

Question : i am underweight and have been for months now i lost 7 lbs when i quit drinking almost 4 years ago, now i seem to stay around 100 lbs i eat healthy and not healthy foods - sometimes stress causes me to lose my appetite but i am 5 7 abd need to put weight on who can i see what kind of dr.

Answered by Dr. Robert Galamaga (2 hours later)

Hello and thank you for sending your question.

Your question is a very good one and I will work on providing you with some recommendations.

Honestly I think one of the best practitioners for you to discuss your concerns with first would be a licensed dietitian or nutritionist. If you can sit down and discuss your history as well as your daily intake of calories this practitioner may be able to put together a strategy to help you gain healthy weight.

A general medical doctor also might be able to provide you with some recommendations. Perhaps also some laboratory testing including checking your thyroid function would be reasonable. If there is still no other explanation for why you're not able to gain even a small amount of weight it might be reasonable for you to see an endocrinologist. This type of position specializes in hormonal balance issues which can sometimes affect weight as well.

Thanks again for sending your question. Please let me know if you have any other specific concerns.

Dr Galamaga

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar