Product review: Ensure Plus Savoury and Resource Breeze

Because of the bulbar dysfunction caused by my spinal muscular atrophy, eating can be a laborious and time-consuming, albeit highly enjoyable, process.

To make life easier, there are liquid diet options that I can turn to in the event I have no time or energy to eat a proper meal. They also help to plug nutritional gaps left by foods I steer clear of for fear of choking, such as vegetables and red meat.

With these special drinks, I can simulate eating an entire meal in half an hour instead of the one-and-a-half hours I usually take to finish a serving of solid food.

Here are two of the supplements I use.

Ensure Plus Savoury

I remember when Ensure only came in disgusting flavours like vanilla and chocolate, both of which tasted like pulverised dog shit.

Fortunately, manufacturer Abbott has since pulled up its socks and now offers a chicken-flavoured version, branded as Ensure Plus Savoury.

Each bottle of 200ml is designed to completely replace one meal.

The soupy mixture is very thick, almost gloopy in fact. But this is understandable because it does contain lots of milk solids to really amp up that nutrition factor.

In terms of taste, it is actually very palatable. The strong salty flavour drowns out any grossness from the chemicals used to impart all the health benefits, and there is even a slight creamy aftertaste which is pleasantly surprising and, dare I say it, moreish.

The package directions say to heat the drink in a saucepan until just below boiling, but I prefer to take it at room temperature and I doubt there is a difference anyway. Do shake it to reincorporate the sediments though. Again, I like mine shaken only gently because it forms a stubborn froth if shaken too hard which I find off-putting. It all comes down to personal preference.

Taken from Abbott official website. This product is available from online retailers like Lazada and Guardian, as well as brick-and-mortar pharmacies like Guardian.

Resource Breeze

Made by food-and-beverage giant Nestle, Resource Breeze is to diet management what the steam engine was to the industrial revolution.

How something so good for me can possibly be so yummy is beyond my comprehension.

Breeze comes in three fruity and delicious flavours: Wild Berry, Peach, and Orange.

I like the Wild Berry the most because it has a tangy zing that adds an extra dimension and works so well with the natural sweetness of the plant-based sugars.

But the others are also quite nice.

The only indication that this is a dietary management drink and not a generic fruit juice drink is that the liquid is slightly thicker than normal. But unlike the Ensure Plus Savoury, it is not to the point of being gloopy. It is clear and contains no obvious signs of milk solids, but they are in there somewhere for sure.

Another key distinction is that one pack of Breeze is not meant to replace an entire meal, but rather to act as a top up. For example, I could eat a smaller serving of solid food and wash it down with a refreshing box of Breeze.

With its striking resemblance to fruit juice, it can certainly be used that way.

Taken from Nestle official website. This product is available from online retailers like Lazada, and brick-and-mortar Guardian shops.

Medical technology has definitely advanced and delivered positive results for patients with nutritional deficiencies like me! Gone are the days of disgusting protein shakes that I absolutely hated. Thanks to Abbott and Nestle, even drinking my meals has become reasonably pleasurable.