The rise of meal replacement drinks
The global meal replacement drink market is expected to increase at an annual rate of 6.5 percent, making meal replacement drinks, a quick and convenient alternative to food, one of the fastest-growing trends today.
Meal replacement drinks contain essential nutrients that nourish the body like a full meal while having controlled calories. While these drinks were initially marketed as weight-loss supplements, increasingly hectic lifestyles and heightened health consciousness have driven up the public demand for these time-saving meal substitutes.
“Weight-loss shakes can be beneficial for short-term weight loss because they help with calorie control while providing all the essential nutrients your body needs,” said Jenn LaVardera, a registered dietitian.
A study from Nutrition Journal found that meal replacement drink diets are effective for weight loss and inflammation and stress control, two factors that underlie many chronic diseases.
Furthermore, the data from a different study showed that meal replacements were more effective in the short-term than low-calorie diets in reducing metabolic risk factors, such as obesity and insulin resistance.
However, there are also many risks to incorporating meal replacement drinks into one’s long-term diet.
“The majority of the meal replacement products on the market are made with reconstituted powders and have a chalky taste,” said Gus Malliarodakis, CEO of nutrition company FitPro. “They have a negative effect on the gastrointestinal system.”
These health risks trace back to the nutritional composition of meal replacement drinks, which are often low in essential fibers and high in sugar alcohols and artificial sweeteners.
“Many contain high levels of sugar or other undesirable additives,” said Kim Pearson, a nutritionist. “In fact, some meal replacement shakes actually contain more sugar than a chocolate bar.”
Beyond the drink's contents, concerns also arise relating to the consequences of consuming these drinks instead of properly proportioned meals. Nutritionists have criticized meal replacement drinks for promoting the idea that one’s body is a system that can be quantified and optimized. This idea is coined as a form of dietary ‘biohacking,’ which some nutritionists view as a rebranding and glamorization of eating disorders.
“[Food replacement drinks] are a very disordered way of fueling the body,” said Priya Tew, a dietician specializing in eating disorders.
One of the first meal replacement drinks created in the U.S., Soylent sees consuming less food as a positive selling point. Soylent was created in 2013 by Silicon Valley engineers who sought an easy and healthy alternative to actual food.
Rob Reinhart, one of Soylent's engineers, said that relying on food for survival was inefficient.
“Food just seemed like a system that’s too complex and too expensive and too fragile,” Reinhart said.
To remedy this issue, Reinhart created Soylent: a drink composed of thirty-five essential nutrients in powder or pill form, blended with water. Other meal replacement startup companies such as Huel have emerged with their unique formulas too.
“Nutrients are like a puzzle,” Reinhart said. “You can put the pieces together in many ways.”
In addition to the debate over the efficacy and health of meal replacement drinks, the social implications of these drinks have been examined as well. For example, the press has heralded Soylent as “the end of food” due to its potential to replace food in the future completely.
“I would hate to see us reduced to being a society that just consumed nutrients to survive,” said Marcia Pelchat, a physiological psychology professor at the University of Pennsylvania.
Additionally, the increasing prevalence of food replacement drinks may influence the cultural aspect of food.
“Food is a part of culture, and the meal plays so many important roles in communication and customs,” Pelchat said. “The history of a culture is really reflected in consuming food; it would be a shame to lose all of that.”
