Long-term lack of compensation of energy intake for meal replacements at lunch.

Abstract

The substitution of liquid meal replacements for a regular meal has been demonstrated to be remarkably effective in reducing daily energy intake resulting in a loss in body weight. The effect is partly due to controlling portion size, a powerful variable determining meal intake of humans. Studies of meal replacements use mostly expensive, nutrient concentrated liquid meals that are substituted for most of their meals. The present study examined the effect of a daily substitution of a commercial, small portioned meals, such as cans of pasta, soups, cereals, etc. in place of a buffet lunch (∼ 200 kcal) on ad libitum energy consumption for a 2 week period in young adults. All foods consumed from Monday to Friday were prepared, eaten and weighed in the Metabolic Unit. The within subject designed compared the effect of eating lunch provided from a buffet to selecting one food from an array of different small portioned commercial foods on total ad lib energy consumed throughout the 2 week period. Subjects failed to increase their energy intake at subsequent meals throughout the 2 week test period to compensate for the reduced energy consumed at lunch. The results suggest that, for most people, replacing lunch with a small energy controlled lunch will result in a significant weight loss.