What is Ensure that makes you gain weight?

October 22, 2025 •

4 min read

Ensure Plus is clinically proven to help people gain weight, and the secret lies in its energy-dense formulation. For individuals struggling with poor appetite or involuntary weight loss, the key ingredients and concentrated nutrition in specific Ensure products are what makes you gain weight.

Quick Summary

Specific Ensure products promote weight gain by providing concentrated calories, protein, and essential nutrients in a convenient, easy-to-drink format. This helps individuals, particularly those with poor appetites or malnutrition, achieve the caloric surplus necessary to gain or maintain a healthy weight.

Key Points

Calorie-Dense Formulation: Specific Ensure products like Ensure Plus and Complete are formulated with a high number of calories to help achieve a caloric surplus necessary for weight gain.
Balanced Macronutrients: Ensure contains a balanced blend of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, providing a comprehensive energy source for the body.
Strategic Supplementation: For best results, drink 1-2 shakes daily as a snack in addition to regular meals, rather than as a meal replacement.
Choose the Right Product: Products like Ensure Plus and Complete are designed for weight gain, while others like Ensure Max Protein are intended for high protein with fewer calories.
Consult a Professional: It is advisable to speak with a healthcare provider before starting Ensure, especially if you have existing health conditions or take other medications.
Supports Specific Needs: Ensure is particularly beneficial for those with poor appetites, malnutrition, or who are recovering from illness or surgery.

The Science Behind Ensure and Weight Gain

At its core, weight gain is achieved by consuming more calories than your body expends, a concept known as a caloric surplus. While whole foods are the ideal source for a nutrient-rich diet, some people face challenges reaching their daily caloric needs due to poor appetite, illness, or post-surgical recovery. Ensure is designed to bridge this nutritional gap by offering a simple, palatable way to add significant calories and nutrients to a daily diet.

Calorie and Nutrient Density

What truly makes Ensure effective for weight gain is its calorie and nutrient density. For instance, products like Ensure Plus pack a substantial 350 calories into a single 8-ounce serving. This concentrated dose of energy is easier to consume than a large, high-calorie meal, especially for someone with a low appetite. This allows individuals to quickly and easily increase their total daily calorie intake without feeling overly full.

Macronutrient Breakdown

Ensure's formulation includes a balanced mix of macronutrients that are crucial for weight gain and overall health.

Carbohydrates: The primary energy source, carbohydrates in Ensure often come from corn maltodextrin and sugar. This provides the body with the fuel needed for daily activities and helps replenish energy stores, contributing to weight gain.
Protein: Ensure contains high-quality protein from milk and soy protein isolates. Protein is essential for building and maintaining muscle mass, which is a key component of healthy weight gain. A high-protein content also supports recovery after physical activity.
Fats: The blend of vegetable oils, such as canola and corn oil, provides a concentrated source of calories and essential fatty acids. Fats are the most energy-dense macronutrient, playing a significant role in increasing the total caloric count of the shake.

Choosing the Right Ensure Product for Your Goals

Not all Ensure products are created equal for weight gain. It is crucial to select the one that aligns with your specific needs. The different formulations vary significantly in calorie and protein content.


Product	Main Goal	Calories per Serving (approx.)	Protein per Serving (approx.)
Ensure Original	Everyday health	220	9g
Ensure Plus	Weight gain or maintenance	350	16g
Ensure Complete	Meal replacement	350	30g
Ensure Max Protein	High protein, low sugar	150	30g

For weight gain, Ensure Plus and Ensure Complete are the most recommended options due to their higher caloric and protein density. Ensure Max Protein, despite its high protein content, is lower in calories and sugar, making it less suitable for adding pounds.

How to Effectively Incorporate Ensure into Your Diet

For best results, Ensure should be used as a supplement to, rather than a replacement for, whole foods. Here are some strategies for effective weight gain:

Supplement between meals: Drink 1-2 shakes daily as a snack between your main meals. This increases your total calorie intake without interfering with your appetite for solid food.
Enhance meals: Use Ensure as a base for high-calorie smoothies. Blend it with other calorie-dense ingredients like nut butters, bananas, and oats for an extra boost.
Increase intake gradually: Start with one shake a day and monitor your progress. You can increase your intake as needed, though it is generally not recommended to exceed 6-8 servings per day without medical advice.
Combine with strength training: For healthy weight gain that includes muscle mass, combine your increased caloric intake with a regular weight training regimen.

Potential Side Effects and Considerations

While generally safe, Ensure can cause side effects for some individuals.

Digestive Issues: Some users report temporary digestive issues such as gas, nausea, or diarrhea as their bodies adjust to the supplement. Choosing a lactose-free or plant-based option may help.
Blood Sugar: The sugar content in certain Ensure products may be a concern for individuals managing blood sugar levels. It is advisable to consult a healthcare professional in this case.
Vitamin K Interactions: The high levels of Vitamin K in some Ensure formulas can interact with blood-thinning medications like Warfarin. Patients on such medication should consult their doctor before starting.
Not for Galactosemia: Ensure products are not suitable for individuals with galactosemia, a rare genetic disorder.

The Whole Picture: Ensure vs. Whole Foods

It is essential to remember that Ensure is a nutritional supplement and should not completely replace a diet of whole foods. The ideal weight gain plan combines nutrient-dense solid foods with a strategic use of supplements like Ensure. Whole foods provide a wider array of vitamins, minerals, and fiber, which are vital for long-term health.

For most people, Ensure should be used to complement their regular eating habits. In cases of severe malnutrition or medical conditions, Ensure may be used as a primary source of nutrition under medical supervision, but its role for most users is to supplement a healthy diet. For more detailed information on Ensure's purpose in a diet, you can refer to the official Ensure website.

Conclusion

In summary, the high-calorie, nutrient-rich formulation of specific Ensure products, particularly Ensure Plus and Ensure Complete, is what makes you gain weight. By providing a concentrated and easy-to-consume source of energy, these shakes help create the necessary caloric surplus for weight gain, especially for individuals who struggle with low appetite. To maximize results and ensure safety, it is recommended to integrate Ensure into a balanced diet, ideally after consulting with a healthcare provider, to support healthy and sustainable weight gain.

Frequently Asked Questions

Ensure Plus and Ensure Complete are the best Ensure products for weight gain. They contain a higher concentration of calories and protein compared to other variants, making it easier to achieve a caloric surplus.

For weight gain, drinking 1 to 2 Ensure shakes daily is typically recommended as a supplement between meals. This helps increase your overall calorie intake without negatively impacting your appetite for solid food.

For most people, it is safe to drink Ensure every day when used as a dietary supplement. However, it's best to consult a healthcare professional to ensure it aligns with your specific health needs, especially if you have conditions like diabetes or are on certain medications.

Some people may experience mild side effects, such as gas, nausea, or diarrhea, particularly when first starting. These symptoms often subside over time as your body adjusts.

While Ensure can be used as an occasional meal replacement, it is generally more effective for weight gain when used as a supplement alongside your regular meals. This ensures you still receive a wide range of nutrients from whole foods.

To maximize weight gain, incorporate Ensure into a broader strategy that includes regular, calorie-dense meals and snacks. Consider using it in high-calorie smoothies with ingredients like nut butter or adding strength training exercises to your routine.

Ensure is a concentrated nutritional supplement and is not inherently 'better' than regular food. It is most useful for individuals who struggle to consume enough calories and nutrients from solid food alone, helping them meet their weight gain goals. A balanced diet of whole foods is still the foundation of healthy nutrition.