Hang tight while we fetch the video data and transcripts. This only takes a moment.
Connecting to YouTube player…
Fetching transcript data…
We’ll display the transcript, summary, and all view options as soon as everything loads.
Next steps
Loading transcript tools…
Meal Replacement Products | Boost Learning and Improvement Community | YouTubeToText
YouTube Transcript: Meal Replacement Products
Skip watching entire videos - get the full transcript, search for keywords, and copy with one click.
Share:
Video Transcript
Video Summary
Summary
Core Theme
Meal replacement products can be an effective and convenient tool for weight management by helping to reduce calorie intake, particularly when used as part of a partial meal replacement diet.
Mind Map
Click to expand
Click to explore the full interactive mind map • Zoom, pan, and navigate
Hello, my name is Ollie and I'm a
specialist dietitian from the specialist
weight management service from South
Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. This
video will provide an overview of the
use of meal replacement products in
weight management and it will answer
frequently asked questions on this subject.
subject.
It is important for us to clearly state
right from the outset that we have
received no funding nor do we benefit
from mentioning any meal replacement
product companies or manufacturers.
This video is based on scientific
evidence and our own specialist
Meal replacements are nutritional
products that are formulated to give the
nutrition of a balanced meal but with
fewer calories. usually 200 to 250
calories per meal replacement product.
Meal placement products usually come in
the form of shake or a bar, but they can
also come in other forms such as soups
and smoothies.
They can be a useful tool to help reduce
overall calorie intake, which can
contribute to weight loss.
Meal placements can be used for
convenience or as part of a partial meal
replacement diet. They can also be used
for part of a more restrictive total
meal replacement diet. However, this is
not appropriate for everyone. For more
information on total meal replacement
diets, please see our video on very low
energy diets, also on the booster platform.
A partial meal replacement diet involves
replacing some meals, but not all, with
meal replacement products. This is a
convenient way to help people achieve a
calorie control diet of approximately
1,200 to 1,800 calories per day. This
can be hard to do with our modern
lifestyles, eating patterns, and a wide
range of dietary options as it is
difficult to know the nutritional
content of the foods and fluids that we
have in different situations and
settings. A partial meal placement diet
usually involves replacing one or two
meals per day with a meal replacement
product. having a balanced meal and
appropriate calorie control snacks if
needed. It is up to the person on which
meal they replace, but they must have
one balanced meal of normal foods every day.
day.
We recommend using the following plate
model to help gauge appropriate portions
and proportions for the main meal of the day.
A common way of doing a partial meal
replacement diet is to replace breakfast
and lunch each with a different meal
placement product for variety, followed
by a third balanced meal and snacks as needed.
With most partial meal replacement diet
plans, it is appropriate to have up to
three snacks per day to prevent feelings
of hunger, help maintain energy levels,
and help manage your blood glucose
levels. These snacks should not be more
than 100 calories each and ideally
protein or fiberbased. Snacks are not a
compulsory part of partial meal
replacement diet. Therefore, they should
only be consumed if needed. Examples of
appropriate snacks are one portion of
fruit, one pot of yogurt, a small
handful of nuts, a slice of cheese, or
two like mini baby bell cheese, or a
small cereal bar. You could also try a
snack product from a meal placement
range, but we're not specifically
recommending this.
When doing a partial meal replacement
diet, you must also remember to drink at
least 2 L of water or other low calorie
fluids every day, such as no added sugar
cordial or tea and coffee with only a
Research shows that partial meal
replacement diets can help people to
lose more weight over the first 3 to six
months of their weight loss journey when
compared to a standard dietary advice
for weight management. This means that
these diets can be useful for someone to
start their weight loss journey. They
could also be helpful for people who are
experiencing a slow rate of weight loss
or even a weight loss plateau. As
already mentioned, partial meal
replacement diets are very convenient
way to achieve a calorie control diet
and often require little or no counting
of calories and preparation. They are
dietary intervention that can be started
quickly with little notice. There is
also some scientific evidence to suggest
that liquid meal placements may help to
control appetite and reduce feelings of
hunger when compared to a solid food
containing the same amount of calories.
Portion meal replacements diets are not
only convenient and potentially cost
effective, but they may also help to
make weight loss easier to achieve than
a normal calorie restricted diet. At the
time of writing 2025, the inclusive cost
of a meal replacement shake powder made
up with skim milk was approximately 75 p
to 2 per meal placement depending on the
brand. In our practice, these diets have
proved successful interventions when
used with the right patients. Remember,
a patient's individual choice is very
If a person is taking a diabetes
medication, especially insulin, they
will need to discuss this with their GP
and/or an appropriately trained member
of a specialist weight management
service before starting a partial meal
replacement diet. Certain medication
doses may require adjustment to enable
you to follow the diet safely. For any
allergies or intolerances, check each
individual meal replacement product and
or snack before consuming. Allergens
vary even across the same range. If a
person has been advised to follow a
fluid restriction by the medical team,
please include any fluid based meal
replacement products within the volume
Although a fixed structured plan such as
partial meal replacement diet can
sometimes be challenging. Meal
replacement products can be used as a
tool rather than a part of a fixed diet.
For example, you can use them as a
backup when you're unable to buy or
choose healthy meal or when you are
particularly busy. Some people use them
when they're in a rush and don't want to
miss lunch. By using meal replacement
products in this way, you're not
following a specific diet, but rather
using them as a tool to achieve calorie
controlled meals when you feel it
appropriate. Meal replacement products
can also be used in a total meal
replacement diet. This is when all of
your meals and most or all of the food
that you eat is replaced by meal
replacement products. These diets are
often low or very low energy diets of
800 calorie per day or less, also known
as a very low energy diet. These should
only be used under the advice of
appropriately trained doctors or health
care professionals such as in but not
restricted to specialist weight
management services. For more
information on very low energy diets and
total meal replacement diets, please see
our video on very low energy diets also
on the boost platform. Please do not
start a very low energy diet outside of
the advice of your GP, consultant,
dietician, specialist nurse or a
I will now provide answer to some of the
most common questions that we are asked
regarding the use of meal replacement products.
There are many acceptable meal
replacement products that we have seen
available from supermarketsarmacies,
health stores and online. A meal
placement product should have
approximately 200 to 250 calories per
serving, at least 15 g of protein per
serving, approximately 4 g of fiber per
serving, and a wide range of essential
vitamins and minerals.
When considering the nutritional
content, cost, availability, and
different ranges, many branded versions
are appropriate. However, the Tesco or
other own brands are acceptable and can
Yes, you can, but always check the
ingredients as you normally would. There
are dairyf free meal replacement
products available such as Vivo Life
This may be due to the lactose content,
especially if the reconstituted powdered
shakes. We advise trying the meal
replacement bars and or dairyf free meal
replacement products. Also, the readyto
drink forms of meal replacement shakes
may be tried as these have a different
formula and may be better tolerated if
symptoms persist. GP or dietitian input
Most standard plans will advise two meal
replacement products and a third
balanced meal. We advise one or two per
day unless you use them occasionally as
a tool which you can also do. Whether
you use one or two per day depends on
the calorie content of the meal that
you're replacing. For example, if you
normally have a sache of porridge or one
slice of toast with butter for
breakfast, then your breakfast is
approximately 200 calories or less. In
this case, there would be little benefit
to your weight management by replacing
this with a meal replacement product, as
these normally contain 200 to 250
calories each. However, if you normally
have two slices of toast with butter and
marmalade or over 40 g of breakfast
cereal with milk, then you will likely
benefit by replacing this with a meal
replacement product, as this will be
less calories. The same principle
applies to other meals. In our
experience, many people using only one
meal replacement product per day do well
replacing their lunch meal. And many
also do well replacing both breakfast
and lunch with a meal replacement
product each. Some people use these
products every other day to gradually
introduce this into their lifestyle. It
is important to use an individualized
As long as a total meal replacement diet
or very low energy diet is not being
followed, the meal replacement products
may be used for as long as it is
beneficial. There is no end date to this
intervention. Scientific research
suggests that following a partial meal
placement diet for 3 to four months and
then transitioning onto a healthy
calorie control to diet may be better
for weight loss and maintenance when
compared to a standard dietary advice.
For reference, the National Institute
for Health and Care Excellence, NICE,
advis that a very low energy diet is
Most people following partial meal
replacement diets do not feel hungry,
especially if they use appropriate
snacks when required. However, some
people may notice some hunger during the
day. If this is too uncomfortable, then
you can consider using higher protein
snacks instead of a normal 100 calorie
snack. Higher protein foods can help to
keep you feeling fuller for longer.
Examples of higher protein snacks are a
small handful of nuts,
a boiled egg or pickled egg, some cooked
chicken breast or other lean meat, 30 g
Yes, low and moderate intensity exercise
is encouraged whilst on a partial meal
replacement diet. You should try to
achieve the UK government physical
activity recommendations as a minimum.
See the NHS website for more information
on this. You can also access our video
on the benefits of physical activity
also on the boost platform. We hope that
this has been an informative and
interesting video on the use of me
replacement products in weight
management. Please see our other
lifestyle psychology based videos also
on the boost platform. Thank you for watching.
Click on any text or timestamp to jump to that moment in the video
Share:
Most transcripts ready in under 5 seconds
One-Click Copy125+ LanguagesSearch ContentJump to Timestamps
Paste YouTube URL
Enter any YouTube video link to get the full transcript
Transcript Extraction Form
Most transcripts ready in under 5 seconds
Get Our Chrome Extension
Get transcripts instantly without leaving YouTube. Install our Chrome extension for one-click access to any video's transcript directly on the watch page.
