Medical nutrition helps patients of all ages to address nutritional deficiencies caused by disease or other medical conditions when the requirements cannot be met by a normal diet. It therefore covers a wide range of food products from nutritional supplements for malnourished people to specific offerings for patients recovering from severe illness or surgery.
wheyco product solutions are ideal for the use in medical nutrition specifically in low pH liquid applications, instant products formats or bars. Conscientious quality control, lowest contaminant levels and a choice of different functionalities are key attributes they deliver on top of the natural benefits of whey protein.
Traditionally the majority of medical enteral offerings was based on RTD, neutral pH, long-shelf life products. However, with development of new product formats and the rising awareness of its nutritional quality whey protein lately got into focus. The benefits of whey protein on muscle synthesis through its high content in branched chain amino acids, specifically leucine and its easy digestibility play out in medical nutrition as well as in other areas. Besides this, several studies indicated potential positive effects of whey protein in the management of certain health problems, e.g. diabetes type II, and further increase the interest in whey protein as a protein source in medical nutrition applications.
A large number of studies showed that high protein intake via enteral nutrition products is beneficial for the recovery of patients especially since only approximately one third of the protein is used for protein synthesis. This is also confirmed by the recommendations of both ESPEN, European Society of for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism, and ASPEN, American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition*.
Serious diseases and surgical or accidental injury result an acute stress response releasing regulatory endocrine hormones and causing a change of substrate utilization, catabolism, and hyper metabolism. In short, the body enters a “fight or flight” status, the physiological response to stress. One reaction within this complex reaction to stress is the breakdown of body proteins for the repair of damaged tissue or as a source of energy via conversion to glucose. At the same time synthesis of new muscle protein is reduced.
*Weimann A, Braga M, Carli F, et al. ESPEN guideline: Clinical nutrition in surgery. Clin Nutr. 2017;36(3):623–650. doi:10.1016/j.clnu.2017.02.013 McClave SA, Taylor BE, Martindale RG, Warren MM, Johnson DR, Braunschweig C, McCarthy MS, Davanos E, Rice TW, Cresci GA, et al. Guidelines for the provision and assessment of nutrition support therapy in the adult critically Ill patient: Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM) and American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (A.S.P.E.N.). JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr 2016; 40:159–211.
Malnutrition can be a serious problem not only for children in developing countries. Weight loss and under-nutrition also occur in Western countries e.g. amongst the aging population caused by age related lack of appetite and therefore reduced food intake. High protein nutrient dense supplements are one solution to overcome this challenge. Using a protein of high nutritional quality and easy digestibility, like whey protein, is important to address protein deficiencies in the most efficient way.
wheyco product solutions provide the opportunity of creating different formats that are attractive to the consumer in taste but also in texture.
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