Meal Replacement

[NattyKnitter116]

Hi,
So not much change my end. Hope you all dealing ok with your situations.
Can I probe the collective brain about the above topic.
DM has diverticulitis on top of diabetes and all the other fun stuff. During an attack she ends up eating tinned soup which isn’t enough nutritionally. Does anyone know of a fortified version that’s edible?
Also if a sugar free version of those nasty Yazoo milkshake drinks exists I’m sure she’d love that.

Of course she is stubborn and wasn’t great about drinking the drinks when she was in rehab for 12 weeks a few years ago, but they threatened her with a tube so she acquiesced.

somehow I don’t think we can get away with that !

Weirdly since I read this, every advert on MN is for Yazoo! Hope you get some help, OP.

Have you tried Huel? It’s not savoury, but the drinks aren’t too sweet either.

DH can’t eat and survives off Fortisip, but those are mostly all very sweet.
You should ask to see a dietician at your GP surgery or the hospital. DH gets all his food on prescription (free).

We added full fat milk powder to my mother's food. Nestle make one, usually found in the exotic food aisle called Nido. I would ask for a Nutritionist referral. Food supplements are hideously expensive and can be difficult to source unless you can get them on prescription.

If she makes the tinned soup with full cream milk (or cream!) and some butter and perhaps some protein powder stirred in, surely that'll have some nutritional value. But I agree with PP that you should get some advice from the nutritionist linked to your DM's GP surgery.

Marvel milk powder is sold in B and M.
you can add it to almost everything to add a load of nutrients.
add it to coffee, tea, glass of milk, desserts or creamy soup.

You can get sugar free protein shakes and some are meal replacement.
Ensure compact is really small and tastes quite good but it's very expensive, has not much protein and loads of sugar!

A dietitian rather than a nutritionist.

Would she drink milk? Hot chocolate with cream?

Look at fortisip drinks. They are about 300 calories each and are nutritional. They are expensive, but can be prescribed by GP .

Fortisips or Calogen

Or just buy Huel

Complan, it won’t alter the taste, but will add extra nutritional value. Is your mum under a dietician? If not can you ask for a referral for support and advice?

Complan. My mum existed on it when she wasn't eating for a while. She preferred the non flavoured but it comes in chocolate and strawberry as well.

Thanks for all your replies. Most of the commercial drinks are either too high in sugar or have ‘sugar free’ sugar - she hates the taste and finds it too sweet (I get this as I’m the same). She also has kidney problems so composition/concentration is an issue. So the Fortisip, Ensure, Complan ones are out.

(They are ok if you monitor your sugars but she doesn’t atm - they want her on injections but she’s resisting it - doesn’t do change - likely autistic - always been this way).
I found one called Whole Supp which looks promising. It’s not the cheapest but I will buy it for her if she likes it.

currently I’m having to implement ‘smoke and mirrors’ method of using my chronically ill DP as the excuse for what I’m buying and saying I’ll chuck her a few to try for next time she’s ill. Really she should have something like this every day but slowly slowly and all that.

i dread becoming that stubborn on older age - mind you there will be no one looking after me unless I organise it myself, so that’s the plan!
I think the cream in hot drinks is a good idea but she won’t do it as it’s contrary to everything she’s practised for years (one of life’s permanent unhappy unsuccessful dieters sadly.)

Op give your local dietetic department a ring, it sounds as if your mum has quite a few chronic health issues going on, and the dietitians will be able to advise you (if she’s not registered with them, they should be able to advise you re referral processes). Sorry OP it’s not very helpful advice. I know it can be emotionally exhausting and very hard watching someone you love struggling

Anything like Fortesip is basically just pure sugar, so no use to her. I would try and find a low sugar protein powder - I'm type 2 diabetic and use ones from Protein works. I make them with soya milk and you can add berries to add some fibre if she can tolerate that? At least with a powder you can vary the thickness of it if she struggles with anything too gloopy.