When you are ill, you may not feel like eating. Unfortunately, that is the time your body needs good nutrition the most. There are a number of nutritional supplement beverages that can help when eating is difficult. Both Ensure and Ensure Plus are healthy sources of vitamins, minerals and calories for people who would benefit from a liquid nutritional supplement. Your physician may prescribe or recommend Ensure or Ensure Plus, or you can purchase either without a prescription from pharmacies.
Types
Abbott Nutrition manufactures both Ensure and Ensure Plus. Both are nutritional supplement beverages designed to provide complete and balanced nutrition, including 24 vitamins and minerals. Both are available in a variety of flavors in ready-to-drink form. Both beverages feature ImmunBalance, a blend of antioxidants and prebiotics designed to strengthen the immune system.
Benefits
High-calorie balanced nutritional beverages such as Ensure and Ensure Plus help people who are at nutritional risk. These may be people who are recovering from an illness or surgery, who have a weakened immune system, or who have experienced undesired weight loss. These products are designed for adults.
Function
Ensure and Ensure Plus can be used as a supplement, as a meal replacement or as the sole source of nutrition on a short-term basis. Ensure is appropriate for people on low-residue diets. Ensure Plus is a better choice for people who have fluid restrictions or whose meals must be of a low volume, such as those recovering from bariatric surgery. Both products are for oral use only.
Features
Ensure contains 250 calories, 9g of protein, 41g of carbohydrate, 3g of fiber, and 6g of fat. Ensure Plus contains 350 calories, 13g of protein, 50g of carbohydrate, 3g of fiber and 11g of fat. Both products contain 2g of prebiotics (short-chain fructooligosaccharides). While both products provide the omega-3 fatty acid ALA, Ensure contains 320mg per serving while Ensure Plus contains 650mg per serving.
Considerations
Ensure and Ensure Plus are both high-calorie liquids. In certain populations---people who test positive for HIV or people recovering from bariatric surgery---highly concentrated liquid nutrition can improve health. These beverages may also be a good choice for a person who wants to gain weight. People who are looking for meal replacements to maintain or lose weight may consider these beverages but should keep their total daily caloric intake in mind.
Member Comments