How Does Boost & Ensure Measure up to LifeSource's Meal Replacement?

By Bruce Brightman - founder, LifeSource Vitamins

How Do They Measure Up?

LifeSource Vitamins Meal Replacement vs. Boost and Ensure

People take meal replacements for many different reasons, and there are many meal replacements on the market to choose from. The most well-known ones may be Boost and Ensure. How do you know which meal replacement will provide you with the health benefits you are seeking? How do you compare apples to apples? First, let's take a look at some of the reasons people drink meal replacements.

- To lose weight

- To gain weight

- To build lean muscle mass

- To get more vitamins than what their solid food diet is providing

- When they can't eat solid food for any reason (such as illness)

The focus of this discussion will be on how LifeSource Vitamins Meal Replacement compares to Ensure and Boost in regards to today's seniors and their unique dietary requirements. The use of meal replacements to build muscle mass and gain other athletic benefits will be left to another discussion.

Today's seniors are active longer, but there are also many elderly patients who reside in nursing homes and assisted care facilities. As our baby boomer population ages, the need and interest in nutritional choices will only increase. Many elderly patients have a nutritional status that is far from adequate, be it from lack of appetite or any number of other health reasons. So, to provide such people with extra calories and as a dietary supplement, meal replacements often become a primary source of nutrition, and in fact, are often ordered by physicians. Meal replacements are an excellent source of essential vitamins and minerals and also provide extra protein and calories. People that have difficulty eating well-balanced meals because of a lack of appetite and other reasons or those that frequently skip meals can greatly benefit from supplementing their diets with a meal replacement.

Many meal replacements fall far short of the term "meal replacement". They are made up of primarily sugar, and even though they advertise a high level of nutrients, a careful reading of the label is in order to make an informed decision as to what is the best meal replacement. It is also important to consider how such meal replacements are manufactured. In many products that contain whey protein, heat is used to pasteurize, which results in the complete destruction of all enzymes in the milk. It also alters the amino acids in the milk and destroys important proteins, destroys the unsaturated fatty acids, kills most of the vitamins, and reduces the availability of the minerals. LifeSource Vitamins's Meal Replacement does not use the pasteurization process, so all the freshness and goodness in the milk remains in the product. LifeSource uses whey protein that comes from grass fed cows that are disease-free, pesticide-free, chemical and hormone-free, and GMO-free. With the increasing demand for natural, organic products, LifeSource is confident in offering only the best in our Meal Replacement.

Nutritional Make-up:

Let's compare a couple of the most popular meal replacements for seniors, Boost and Ensure, with LifeSource Vitamins Meal Replacement. The following chart compares major nutritional ingredients of each:

Other minerals are also included, too numerous to mention here, however it should be noted that additional nutritional information can be obtained on company websites. In addition to other minerals, LifeSource Vitamins Meal Replacements also contain essential amino acids in a very complete amino acid profile. Our Meal Replacement scores a 1.0 (perfect score on the F.D.A. test), which means all essential amino acids are present in the F.D. A. required amounts and are extremely digestible.

As demonstrated in the chart, LifeSource's Meal Replacement far outweighs the competition in percent of daily value of essential nutrients. In addition, it adds 4 grams of fiber, versus none in Boost or Ensure. Fiber fills you up and keeps you satisfied. In addition, it promotes regularity, is important in the prevention of heart disease and cancer, and helps to maintain blood sugar levels. LifeSource's Meal Replacement is also lower in sodium, an important contributing factor to hypertension and heart disease. For seniors concerned with watching their sodium for these reasons, LifeSource is again the obvious choice.

LifeSource's Meal Replacement provides 48g of protein vs. the competition's 10g and 8.8g. Protein is necessary to maintain muscle mass, which decreases as we age.

Key Ingredients:

Next, let's take a look at the key ingredients in each meal replacement in our comparison. Remember when reading a label that the ingredients are listed in order of quantity, with the first ingredients being the highest quantity.

Boost:

Water, sugar, corn syrup solids , milk protein concentrate, vegetable oil, (canola, high oleic sunflower, corn oils) and less than 0.5% of soy lecithin, carrageenan, salt, natural and artificial flavor, vitamin A palmitate, beta-carotene, ascorbic acid, sodium ascorbate, vitamin D₃, vitamin E acetate, thiamine hydrochloride, riboflavin, niacinamide, vitamin B₆ hydrochloride, folic acid, choline bitartrate, vitamin B ₁₂, biotin, calcium pantothenate, vitamin K₁, calcium carbonate, ferrous sulfate, potassium iodide, magnesium phosphate, zinc sulfate, cupric sulfate, potassium citrate, potassium chloride, sodium selenite, chromic chloride, sodium molybdate, manganese sulfate. Contains milk protein and soy.

In addition to the above, Chocolate flavored BOOST contain cocoa processed with alkali. Butter Pecan flavored BOOST also contains natural and artificial flavor, which contains pecan extract, sulfites and hydrolyzed soy protein. Strawberry flavored BOOST contains Red 3 (color). Chocolate flavored BOOST contains ferric pyrophosphate (instead of ferrous sulfate)

Ensure :

Water, corn maltodextrin, sugar (sucrose), corn syrup, milk protein concentrate , cocoa powder (processed with alkali), soy oil, soy protein isolate, canola oil; less than 0.5% of: corn oil, calcium phosphate, potassium citrate, soy lecithin, magnesium phosphate, magnesium chloride, natural and artificial flavors, salt (sodium chloride), sodium citrate, carrageenan, choline chloride, ascorbic acid, potassium chloride, dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate, zinc sulfate, niacinamide, ferrous sulfate, calcium pantothenate, copper sulfate, manganese sulfate, chromium chloride, fd&c red #3, vitamin a palmitate, thiamine chloride hydrochloride, pyridoxine hydrochloride, riboflavin, folic acid, biotin, sodium selenate, potassium iodide, sodium molybdate, phylloquinone, cyanocobalamin, and vitamin d3. Contains milk and soy ingredients; gluten-free; suitable for lactose intolerance.

LifeSource Vitamins Meal Replacement Ingredients:

Cross Filtered whey isolate, agglomerated whey isolate, milk isolate, agglomerated milk isolates, L-Glutamine. Natural Flavoring and Stevia. That is it, nothing bad, just vitamins, minerals and all of what your body needs, none of what it doesn't!

Note that the first four ingredients in Boost are: water, sugar, corn syrup solids, and milk protein concentrates. The first four ingredients in Ensure are: Water, corn maltodextrin, sugar (sucrose), corn syrup. The first four ingredients in LifeSource's Meal Replacement are: Cross filtered whey isolate, agglomerated whey isolate, milk isolate, agglomerated milk isolates.

Think about it - would you rather be drinking LifeSource's natural, healthy formula or the other guy's water, sugar, and corn syrup?

It is clear from the comparison that LifeSource Vitamins's Meal Replacement will deliver an exceptional nutritional platform to promote good health. They provide a perfect, compact meal in a formula that is high in protein, low in high-glycemic index carbohydrates, and contain a wide array of vitamins and minerals. They are low in sugar and contain no cholesterol, They are nutrient dense and can be mixed easily and conveniently.

On a per-meal cost basis, Ensure comes in at $1.07, Boost at $1.36, and LifeSource Meal Replacement at $1.00 for a single scoop for women, & $2.00 for two scoops for men. Yes, LifeSource is a little more expensive for men not women due to requirements, but the quality and nutritional benefits are worth it. You can always be assured that with LifeSource you are purchasing a quality natural product that has been manufactured with the utmost care and concern for your health.

For additional detailed information, visit: LifeSource Meal Replacements

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Every LifeSource Vitamins product exceeds all regulatory standards and requirements set forth in the FDA's Code of Federal Regulation. ( 21 CFR, part 111 ) as well as all Good Manufacturing Practices enforced by the FDA. CGMP's provide for systems that assure proper design, monitoring, and control of manufacturing processes and facilities. ( CGMP ).

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Disclaimer: All the information contained throughout this website is based upon the opinions of the founder of LifeSource Vitamins, Bruce Brightman, and the entire team at LifeSource Vitamins whose relentless research and studies have been ongoing since 1992. Other articles and information are based on the opinions of the authors, who retain the copyright as marked in the article. The information on this site is not intended to replace your health care professional, but to enhance your relationship with them. Doing your own studying and research and taking your health care into your own hands is always best, especially in partnership with your health care professional.

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