The 'lonely struggle' of trying to gain weight

The 'lonely struggle' of trying to gain weight - Health - Fitness - msnbc.com:

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With Americans’ obesity driving the focus on weight loss, scant attention is paid to the other side of the scale — underweight people who are trying to put on pounds.

Being underweight is not a common problem in the United States, affecting only about 2 percent of adults, compared to two-thirds who are overweight or obese.

But people who are too thin can be vulnerable to disease because they may have weakened immune systems; they are also at higher risk of osteoporosis.

There are varying reasons why a person may be underweight. Some may have fast metabolism and burn calories off quickly. Others may be recovering from an eating disorder like anorexia or bulimia or from the side effects of disease such as cancer or AIDS.