They promise to have all the necessary nutrients that are equivalent to a balanced plate of food. They promise that by consuming them daily, you will be able to lose weight in no time. They promise that your diet will be healthier if you replace one of your three daily meals with one of those bars or a shake. Fueled by the endless search to have a slender figure in accordance with hegemonic beauty canons, this type of product shines on the shelves of supermarkets and pharmacies as the optimal solution to lose weight and find thinness.
But substituting a full meal for bars or shakes can present some risks. For example, it can have a considerable impact on the relationship that many people have with food, which can be a contributing factor in the development of eating disorders (EDs). According to figures from the Institute for Eating Disorders Foundation (Fita), in Spain there are more than 400,000 people who suffer from some type of eating disorder, and this is expected to increase by 12% over the next 12 years.
“These substitutes do not teach us to eat healthily either,” says Esther Vives, dietitian-nutritionist and spokesperson for the College of Dietitians-Nutritionists of Catalonia (CoDiNuCat). If one of the golden rules for eating healthy is to moderate the intake of ultra-processed foods, doubts arise when the advertising campaigns of an industrial product guarantee to be the best ally for weight loss.
“Although their advertising ensures that they are products enriched with all the necessary nutrients, their quality will never be the same as that of a complete meal,” explains the CoDiNuCat nutritionist. The type of fiber that these bars contain, for example, is not the same as that included in fruits and vegetables.
Glucose syrup, potassium citrate and sodium carboxymethylcellulose are some of the ingredients that are impossible to pronounce that we can find in the composition of these products. They are not easily recognizable ingredients.
In addition, in a study carried out in 2020 by researchers from the Department of Nutrition and Bromatology of the University of Granada, traces of toxic minerals were found in the composition of some energy bars, pancakes and replacement shakes. The academics assure that “in the copper found, its levels were quite high, so that the intake of two substitute bars could be potentially toxic”, added to the fact that two of the products studied exceeded the legal limits of contaminating metals established by the Authority European Food Safety (EFSA).
In these products it is also possible to find sugar substitutes, such as sweeteners. Recently, the World Health Organization (WHO) has released a report warning that these substances do not help reduce body fat in the long term and may increase the risk of some pathologies. Therefore, it is not convenient for us to consume them in excess.
Everything points to the fact that it would be better to avoid this type of product, or at least not to base our usual diet on an ultra-processed food at the cost of “replacing” a complete meal.
On this, the OCU establishes that, although nothing happens with eating them occasionally, in the long term, “making the intake of meal substitutes habitual could have harmful effects, or cause nutritional imbalances.”
Vives has a more forceful position. He ensures that they are not the most optimal option and does not recommend them for weight loss. “I would never go ultra-processed,” he concludes.
There are ready-made meal options that are healthier than bars or shakes. A good example are green salads, which provide us with fiber and vitamins, as well as help us consume the recommended daily amount of vegetables, or canned cooked legumes.
