Low-calorie blends: Popular Foods and their use

by Abbas Jahangir · June 25, 2021

Difficulties in the formation of correct eating behavior, lack of willpower, self-discipline often become a brake on the path to normalizing body weight. In this case, sometimes they resort to using industrially prepared food concentrates. Low-calorie mixtures come to the rescue.

A simple low-calorie diet does not provide the body with a balanced amount of essential nutrients, vitamins, minerals and other essential food components. A simple limitation of the amount of food and the number of its meals inevitably leads to hypovitaminosis and other metabolic disorders. At the same time, weight is reduced not only due to a decrease in the mass of adipose tissue, but also due to the loss of proteins, primarily from muscles and skin.

Popular dry low-calorie slimming mixtures

Balanced low-calorie mixtures help to lose weight without harm to beauty and health. Usually they are a powdery mass, which is diluted with water, milk or fermented milk products. Such mixtures, with a low calorie content, provide the body with the necessary nutrients and biologically active substances.

One of these products is Vital-Formel, manufactured by the German company Form-Med Healthcare. It contains milk protein, fructose, inulin, vitamins, minerals. When using this mixture, take 2 scoops (17.8 g) of powder per serving and mix with one glass (200-250 g) low-fat (no more than 1.5% fat) milk, unsweetened yogurt, kefir, buttermilk and other dairy products, The content of fats (including essential fatty acids and lecithin) and some other components in the finished product is increased by the nutrients of milk.

The qualitative and quantitative composition of the product “Vital-Formel”

Usually Vital-Formel replaces regular meals once or twice a day. With three meals a day, one meal (preferably lunch) consists of the usual food, and one or two portions of Vital-Formel are taken for breakfast and dinner. It is not recommended to take more than three servings of the concentrate at a time.

Normalization of body weight is carried out under the supervision of a physician. Typically, the duration of the course of diet therapy is from one week to one and a half months, the number of servings of the concentrate is from one to three per day. Large doses of the product and the duration of administration should be discussed with a dietitian. Vital-Formel is not just food, but a medicinal product, and its uncontrolled use is unacceptable. Therefore, a dry mixture for weight loss can be harmful to health in case of neglect of the rules of use.

The advantage of using Vital-Formel in comparison with low-calorie diets with a sharp restriction of carbohydrates is that the use of this product maintains a low level of insulin, which is important for maintaining the body’s ability to oxidize fat. Replacing regular food with a low-calorie, but balanced composition of the mixture avoids hunger, but the level of insulin in the blood remains the same as in the “hungry” state of the body. This creates conditions for the accelerated breakdown of fats in adipose tissue and provides the body’s energy needs through the oxidation of fatty acids. “Vital-Formel” compensates for the deficiency of antioxidants at the cellular level, as it contains a sufficient amount of vitamins A, C, E and macro- and microelements with a powerful antioxidant effect. This prevents the harmful effects of free radicals, the formation of which increases with a decrease in the calorie content of the diet. The use of “Vital-Formel” helps to avoid a deficiency of proteins and other essential food components, to normalize the nutritional structure and maintain it at an optimal level until the patient learns to eat exactly what is really useful and necessary for his body.

Low Calorie Slimming Blends:

To optimize the diet with a low-calorie diet, other imported nutritional mixtures are also used – “Dietfast” by “Crown” (USA), “Optifast” by the well-known Swiss company “Sandoz”, “Ultra Diet Trim”, etc.

The domestic drug “Doctor Slim” is developed according to the same principles as all nutritional low-calorie mixtures currently used to treat obesity. The protein component of the “Doctor Slim” mixture is represented by milk and soy proteins. The calorie content of the mixture is low, only 339 kcal per serving of diluted powder (100 g).

We recommend one meal per day of regular low-fat meals (vegetables, fruits, dairy products, fish, etc.) for dinner and three servings of Dr. Slim – one serving instead of breakfast, lunch and before bed. The calorie content of such a diet is about 1800 kcal per day, that is, it is approximately equal to the basal metabolic rate. According to the developers of this nutrient mixture M. Ginzburg and N. Kryukov, the body weight loss with this unloading regime for the first month averaged 5.2 kg. In three months, their patients lost an average of 10.6 kg, about 12% of their original body weight. Diet therapy with the use of the drug “Doctor Slim” in 80% of patients led to a decrease in excess body weight by at least 5% from the initial one. In more than half of obese patients, weight decreased by 10% or more.

The composition of the mixture “Doctor Slim”

The Ultra Diet Trim dietary nutritional formula is available in the form of a milk shake powder in three flavors: chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry. The package contains 430 g of the mixture. To prepare a cocktail, stir one scoop (35 g) in 250 ml of milk. The energy value of one cocktail portion is 210 kcal. It contains 18 essential vitamins and minerals, as well as protein, fiber and carbohydrates to provide a balanced daily diet. The drug prevents hunger, reduces appetite, as it contains a lot of fiber and is balanced in essential vitamins and minerals. To reduce body weight with this shake, it is recommended to use three servings instead of breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea. Dinner consists of foods that are low in fat, but its calorie content should be at least 450 kcal. This provides an energy value of the daily diet of 1100-1200 kcal. In the first week, body weight loss is on average 2 kg, later – 1 kg per week.

Among the artificial nutritional mixtures is the Cambridge Nutrition, known in the United States as Food for Life. This blend, developed at the University of Cambridge in England, was patented back in 1979. Cambridge Nutrition includes not only powdered low-calorie mixes for making nutritious cocktails with various flavors, but also “instant” soups and cereals, as well as chocolate, nut and fruit bars. One bar or bag of the mixture is one serving, the calorie content of which is 140 kcal. Their composition is balanced so that any of the servings, regardless of taste and texture, contains one third of the daily value of all the nutrients that a person needs.

Nutritional value of “Cambridge Nutrition”

To reduce body weight, it is recommended to take one serving of any of the components of the “Cambridge Nutrition” three times a day. You can add small amounts of fruits, vegetables, or other low-calorie, low-fat foods to it. Weight loss is 5-7 kg in 15 days.

A milder regimen includes one low-fat, low-fat meal of lean meat, poultry or fish, rice, bread, potatoes, and a variety of vegetables and fruits. The rest of the daily diet consists of two to three servings of “Cambridge Nutrition”. The term of using such a program is no more than 6 weeks, weight loss is 1.5-2 kg per week. When using “Cambridge Nutrition” you need to drink plenty of fluids – at least 8 glasses a day. “Cambridge Nutrition” is not recommended for pregnant women and nursing mothers. Like all artificial diets, it is advisable to use “Cambridge Nutrition” under the supervision of a doctor in order to avoid adverse effects on the body.

The rationale for using all artificial low-calorie mixtures for weight loss is as follows:

Due to the intake of a sufficient amount of protein, the loss of fat mass is achieved while maintaining muscle mass.
The vitamins, macro- and microelements, dietary fiber included in the mixtures allow avoiding metabolic disorders, despite the low calorie content of the diet.
A low-calorie diet promotes moderate ketone production from the breakdown of fatty acids. Ketoacidosis can reduce appetite, which makes it easier to tolerate a reduced calorie diet. With a balanced intake of nutrients, as opposed to complete starvation, the concentration of ketones is significantly lower than the dangerous level.
Low-calorie nutritional formulas can help promote healthy eating behaviors.

The last point is especially important. Changing eating habits is a cornerstone of any weight management method.

Another important aspect of weight loss is the speed of getting rid of those extra pounds. The desire to lose weight as quickly as possible leads either to health problems, or to the appearance of flabby folds of the skin in place of roundness, or to the fact that the patient, having lost one or two kilograms in a month, declares the diet ineffective and returns to his usual way of life. As we already know, the body responds by creating additional fat stores. How do you determine the optimal rate of weight loss?

To lose 1 kg of fat, it is necessary that the difference between calorie intake and energy expenditure is 7,700 kcal. Normally, to maintain a stable body weight, a person who is not involved in heavy physical labor or sports should receive 30-35 kcal per 1 kg of body weight. With a weight of 60 kg, the weight will remain unchanged with the consumption of 1800-2100 kcal, depending on the individual characteristics of metabolism and the level of physical activity. If a person consumes 300 less calories daily, then it will take more than three weeks to spend 7,700 kcal, which corresponds to one kilogram of fat. Weight loss at a faster rate usually occurs at the expense of water and muscle loss. Muscle tissue is lost more easily than adipose tissue: its “energy value” is only 1100 kcal. Dehydration of the body can lead to a violation of the water-salt balance; potassium deficiency is especially dangerous. Therefore, from a medical point of view, losing weight too quickly does more harm than good.

In order to avoid the undesirable consequences of low-calorie diets while losing weight, it is necessary to ensure an adequate intake of proteins, minerals, vitamins and dietary fiber. Low-calorie nutritional mixes are designed to do just that, but remember that they are more drugs than complete foods.

Low-calorie artificial nutritional mixes cannot replace natural foods. Their long-term and even more constant use can bring no less harm to health than any irrationally composed diet. To effectively achieve and maintain optimal weight, a transition to a full-fledged balanced diet is necessary. Any type of artificial nutritional formula should only be used as directed and under medical supervision.