What is the PREMIUM Study About?

Meal replacements are nutritionally complete formula foods used to substitute a meal. They can be a drink, bar, or soup. These products have been gaining popularity because they can help individuals lose weight. In addition, depending on its ingredients, meal replacements may affect our health. For this reason, meal replacements have been studied for health benefits. However, how meal replacements affect the microbes living in our gut, inflammation, and our genes is not known. Therefore, our study will investigate how a meal replacement affects these factors, as well as metabolism, the amount of fat and muscle of our bodies, and appetite. The powdered meal replacement used in this study is not investigational and is available for purchase by the public. However, because we are using it in this study to see the effect on gut microbes, this meal replacement is considered investigational by Health Canada, which has approved this study. 

PREMIUM is an exciting study being conducted at the University of Alberta. Joining this study is entirely voluntary.

Want to learn more about this study? Click here!

If you have additional questions, please contact us. Please note recruitment is closed, thank you for your interest.