Ensures: It pays to read the label

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My friend's dad convinced me to try one, that it was stocked full of nutrients. Looked at the back, thought I saw 150 calories and 3g sugar. I didn't want him to give me a hard time about it, especially when he insisted that it was as good as his protein powder I originally asked to try (yeah right, it only had 9 stinking grams). Knowing I had the room in my macros, I drank it.

Then, later, when no one was watching, I took a better glance at the ingredients. 250 calories for only 8oz! Not only that, 24 whopping grams of sugar! Plus corn syrup! Then I come to find out that it's often used to GAIN weight by those suffering from ED. Sure, it has added vitamins, but I could've gotten those from a typical multivitamin. -_-

I feel like the girl from "Mean Girls" who found out the truth about Cal Teen bars.... luckily I only had one.

Replies

  • leslisa
    leslisa Posts: 1,350 Member
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    Glad you caught it before you kept going.

    Ensure and Ensure Plus are what the pediatrician recommended for my son to gain weight. They are not in place of his vitamins. He still has to take a multivitamin.

    About protein powder, might want to check with the doctor and examine those labels, also. Not all protein powders are the same. My son's doc says he can drink it, but only the ones that are straight up whey protein with no additives (actually he gave us the brand). They others have too much extra crap in them. Some of the powders can cause heart attacks when you are drinking them and taking certain vitamin supplements.

    Best of luck.
    leslisa
  • ruggedshutter
    ruggedshutter Posts: 389 Member
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    Holy thread necro Batman....lol :D
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
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    Yeah, Ensure is typically recommended for the elderly that don't eat enough. It's designed to be high calorie.
  • snickerscharlie
    snickerscharlie Posts: 8,578 Member
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    My 92 yr old mom drinks them *in addition* to meals in order to try and keep weight on. She drinks the Extra Calorie version. :)
  • barbecuesauce
    barbecuesauce Posts: 1,771 Member
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    leslisa wrote: »
    Glad you caught it before you kept going.

    Ensure and Ensure Plus are what the pediatrician recommended for my son to gain weight. They are not in place of his vitamins. He still has to take a multivitamin.

    About protein powder, might want to check with the doctor and examine those labels, also. Not all protein powders are the same. My son's doc says he can drink it, but only the ones that are straight up whey protein with no additives (actually he gave us the brand). They others have too much extra crap in them. Some of the powders can cause heart attacks when you are drinking them and taking certain vitamin supplements.

    Best of luck.
    leslisa

    I'm sure she's figured out how to read labels in the last 2.5 years.
  • SergeantSausage
    SergeantSausage Posts: 1,673 Member
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    Corn Syrup is not The Evil that you imply.