Being too thin seems an enviable condition, given the rate of overweight and obesity in today's society. But with this unhealthy weight comes a host of potential complications. In addition to your not feeling your best, your body may not be able to perform optimally and compromise your health.

While a 2,000-calorie diet likely won't be enough for weight gain if you're young or very active, it can allow you to eat enough extra calories for safe weight gain if you're older, a woman, or you live a relatively inactive lifestyle.

While many home chefs and seafood aficionados are familiar with the best cooking methods for red snapper, cod and orange roughy, fewer are familiar with monkfish, a white-fleshed fish found in northern Atlantic Ocean waters.

It's always better to get the extra calories you need for weight gain from real food. But if you're having a difficult time getting the calories you need from what you eat, you may consider a supplement.

While it would be nice to eat your way to an hourglass figure, no food has the power to give you a bigger butt or breasts. Gaining weight can increase the size of your chest and booty -- but it'll also make you gain weight in other areas, and where you gain weight comes down primarily to genetics.

Being ill can wreak havoc on your entire body and cause you to lose a lot of weight rapidly. Once you're on the mend, it's important to put that weight back on since being underweight can slow down your recovery, according to the McKinley Health Center.

A boy's body undergoes enormous changes during his teen years, many of which can start as early as age 14. Boys start to gain weight, particularly muscle mass, and experience a broadening of the shoulders, deepening of the voice and development of facial hair.

No matter how committed you are to your weight loss plan, sometimes life just gets in the way and you are forced to skip a workout. It's easy to picture all of your hard work going down the drain while you're sick in bed or working late.

Resorting to cheap dollar-menu fast food and large bags of sale-priced chips might be tempting when you're trying to gain weight on a budget. After all, these are a cheap source of calories -- and a surplus of calories leads to weight gain.

While no one single nutrient will completely make or break your weight-gain progress, getting enough protein in your diet is key for maximizing weight gain. On top of needing extra calories to add pounds, you'll also need more protein than the average sedentary person, especially if you're trying to gain muscle.

Weight gain occurs if you consume more calories than you burn daily, regardless of what time of day you eat the calories. If you're eating late, heading straight to bed and the number on the scale is going up, it's possible that you're eating too much.

If you notice your weight has gone up right after you've had a glass of water or a fiber-rich snack, don't worry. Water and fiber don't cause permanent weight gain; in fact, they're often linked to weight loss.