There are many types of diet to lose weight and some of them use meal replacement products. These meal replacement products are designed to provide a more precise control of the nutrients in the diet.
When we want to lose weight, the aim is to reduce our energy intake by reducing the amount of fat and carbohydrate we eat. If we simply cut our food intake, there is a risk we could also reduce our intake of nutrients the ones the body needs for health, including protein, vitamins and minerals. On a standard low-calorie diet, a little planning, perhaps with the help of a nutrition professional, can ensure all nutritional requirements are covered using natural foods. But it is an entirely different matter in the case of a very low calorie diet, used in the more effective specialist nutrition programmes for weight loss, such as the Pronokal PnK programme.
PronoKal has over 20 years' experience in the design of meal replacement products for their very low calorie ketogenic diets. During this time, clinical trials have shown that the nutritional status of patients following the PnK programme remains excellent, evidenced especially by the better ability of patients on the programme to maintain muscle mass compared with other methods, including surgery or the newer drug therapies. This is due in great part to the meal replacement products plus supplementation with 100% of daily requirements, which together ensure the correct intake of protein, vitamins and minerals.
All the PronoKal meal replacements contain protein of very high biological quality. The sources for this protein include egg, milk and soy, all of European origin to ensure they comply with all hygiene, safety, traceability and transgenic regulations.
Each product has the same amount of protein: 15 grams. So, it doesn’t matter which product you have at each meal, you will get the same benefit. This also allows us to know exactly how much protein a patient receives and adjust it to the body’s requirements, avoiding an insufficient protein intake, which can affect health and cause muscle loss during weight loss. It is also important to avoid excess protein intake, as it cannot be stored and will be converted to sugar and fat – just what you don’t want when trying to lose weight.
The other macronutrients (fat and carbs) are strictly limited to keep patients in ketosis and on a very low calorie diet. This, together with the appropriate protein intake, ensures both the quality and the rate of weight loss.
The PronoKal meals also include our exclusive, patented Protein-DHA®, a combination of protein and omega-3 DHA. Omega-3 DHA is a natural fat that can be used by the immune system to help turn off inflammation. Chronic metabolic inflammation is a consistent finding in obesity and predisposes to further weight gain, so measures to reduce inflammation will benefit your weight loss and as well as help to prevent subsequent weight regain.
The PronoKal products also include soluble fibre that feeds our gut bacteria. The gut microbiome changes with weight gain and with a poor diet, and those changes have been shown to promote further weight gain. The restoration of a healthy gut microbiome will therefore return it to a state in which it favours a weight control. This is yet another component of the PronoKal programme that provides boosts long-term benefit.
We have a wide range of products, more than 40 different meals and snacks in total. They come as sachets of powder to be prepared with water or as ready-to-eat products, which are very convenient to take with you to work or whenever you want to go out. The ready-to-eat products include bars, shakes, biscuits, crisps and more. The sachets include hot and cold drinks, desserts and soups, and some that need cooking, such as omelettes, nuggets and pancakes. All the products have a very low carbohydrate and fat content.