OT--best meal replacement drinks

I have a neighbor who has GI issues. At times he is unable to eat and he will take one of the various nutrition drinks. I was just curious: what are the best ones out there. I know I have on occasion had Ensure/Ensure Plus. I usually get the generic. I think my neighbor uses Boost and something called Soylent.

Is there a "best one" to get?

I suspect some have too much fat and/or sugar. But if you can't eat....?

Mel

I drink Soylent (not green) regularly, I like it. 400 calories of engineered nutrition. I get it on "Subscribe and save" from Amazon to keep the cost down. The cafe mocha flavor is my favorite, also has added caffeine boost. Low sugar content, and the fat is mostly healthy fats (mono, poly unsaturated)

I've always preferred Boost over Ensure, and usually I get the Boost Plus which has added protein and carbs, more than the High Protein variety. I used to get the CVS generic equivalent. And because of multiple GI issues I had been getting Pronourish on monthly order from Amazon, but the product has been discontinued by Nestle. I'm not sure if the FODMAP is actually a problem for me, but I figured it wouldn't hurt to use it.

Also recently have been buying Atkins shakes, vanilla or cafe mocha (agree with "goes2eleven" on that one). They're about $5 for four drinks. During my hospitalization the only thing I could have besides broth was Ensure Clear, wild berry flavor, which I now keep on hand for when I need a protein kick that's juicy rather than milky.

Typically I have one or two such drinks a day, and start every day with a Zone Perfect fortified granola bar. With the combination of Barrett's, colitis and mesenteritis I've had to give up a lot of my favorite foods, and have been trying the "low residue" diet... basically limited to baked chicken breast and lots of rice.

Re: Soylent Green.

For those of you who have no idea what we're talking about:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zafa-hamz0

Here is one of many Review Articles:

Supplemental nutrition drinks: help or hype?
https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/supplemental-nutrition-drinks-help-or-hype

You don't need a doctor's okay to try a nutrition shake, but it's a good idea to ask your doctor if any of the ingredients will interfere with your medications. For example, some drinks contain vitamin K, and sudden changes in vitamin K intake may interfere with the effect of the blood thinner warfarin (Coumadin).

Supplemental nutrition shakes contain more than just healthy ingredients. "You may be getting more sugar than any of the other ingredients," says Stacey Nelson, a dietitian from Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital.

Soylent? First thing that comes to mind is the old movie, with Charlton Heston, that has the famous quote "Soylent Green is people" - an odd choice for a product name.

Wow I just drink plain old v-8 juice

Larry