What is Enteral Formula?
Enteral Formula is a special liquid food composition of nutrients like protein, vitamins, carbohydrates, fats, and minerals that deliver nutrition directly into the gastrointestinal tract through a tube, bypassing the oral cavity. This can be done through a variety of methods, including nasogastric, nasoenteric, gastrostomy, and jejunostomy tubes supplied through a feeding tube into the body, which helps prevent malnutrition. Enteral nutrition is typically used when a person cannot consume food or drink orally due to medical reasons such as gastrointestinal disorders, cancer, or neurological disorders. It is also used in cases where the person has a high nutritional requirement but is unable to consume enough nutrients through oral intake.
Benefits of Enteral Nutrition Products
- It can help to meet the nutritional needs of individuals who are unable to consume adequate nutrients through oral intake
- Enteral nutrition is a complete nutritional formula for tube feeding or oral supplementation
- Tube feeding allows adults or children to direct intake of sustenance through the abdomen into the stomach
- The components of the enteral formula include carbohydrates, protein, fat, and minerals that meet one’s nutritional requirements
- The lactose-free enteral feeding solutions are prepared in liquid form, including Isocal and Osmolite providing a complete, balanced diet
When are the Tube Feeding Formulas used?
A few conditions in which tube feeding is crucial are:
- Head and Neck Cancers: Enteral tube feeding is a conventional means of delivering enteral nutrition to individuals with head and neck cancer receiving chemotherapy or radiotherapy.
- Neurological Difficulties: Enteral formula helps in the nutritional management of individuals with neurological disorders who are unable to eat or drink directly from their jaws. Enteral products understand and manage nutritional needs in such conditions or ailments.
- Traumatic Injuries: In order to give complete care for people with traumatic conditions who are in need of enteral nutrition can be fulfilled with the help of enteral pump feeding.
- Gastrointestinal Diseases: The important nutrients required by people with gastrointestinal diseases can be taken from tube feeding formulas, which prevent the risk of nutritional breakdown.
Best Enteral Formulas at HPFY
- Global ProCel Whey Protein Supplement Powder
- Nestle Nutren 2.0 Calorically Dense Complete Liquid Nutrition
- Abbott Nutrition Tube Feeding Formula
- Medtrition ProSource TF Ready to Hang Tube Feeding Formula
- Abbott Nutrition Vital AF 1.2 Cal Oral Supplement
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is the purpose of enteral nutrition?
Enteral formula, also known as enteral feeding, is a way of delivering nutrition directly to your stomach or small intestine. Your doctor might recommend tube feeding if you can't eat enough to get the nutrients you need.
2. What are the methods of enteral feeding?
Enteral feeding may mean nutrition taken through the mouth or through a tube that goes directly to the stomach or small intestine. In the medical setting, the term enteral feeding is most often used to mean tube feeding.
3. What are three indications for the use of enteral formula?
Specific indications for using tube feeding formulas are:
- Inability to take oral feedings due to head or neck trauma
- Prolonged anorexia
- Liver failure
- Critical illnesses (e.g., burns) causing metabolic stress
4. What is oral vs. enteral nutrition?
Oral nutrition support – for example, fortified food, additional snacks, and/or sip feeds. Enteral tube feeding – the delivery of a nutritionally complete feed directly into the gut via a tube.
Where to buy Enteral Formula Online?
At HPFY, we carry a wide range of enteral nutrition products from top feeding tube food brands and manufacturers like Nestle Nutrition, Nutricia North America, Kate Farms Inc, and many more. Shop from us and get reward dollars on every purchase. Reward Dollars can be used on your next purchase. Order now!
Read more about Enteral Nutrition
FAQ's
Frequently asked questions
- Check the expiry date of your formula. Unopened cans of formula can be stored at room temperature for long periods of time
- Cover open cans of formula and store them in the refrigerator between feedings. Do not use any open, unused cans of formula after 24 hours
These feeds contain all the carbohydrate, protein, fat, water, electrolytes, micronutrients (vitamins and trace elements) and fibre required by a stable patient.
These contain nitrogen as short peptides or free amino acids and aim to improve nutrient absorption in the presence of pancreatic insufficiency or inflammatory bowel disease. The fibre content of these feeds is variable and some are supplemented with vitamin K, which may interact with other medications.
Nutrients such as glutamine, arginine and essential omega-3 fatty acids are able to modulate immune function. Enteral immunonutrition may decrease major infectious complications and length of hospital stay in surgical and some critically ill patients.
- Re-feeding syndrome occurs in previously malnourished patients who are fed with high carbohydrate loads.
- Carbohydrates (eg, glucose) in the feed can cause a large increase in the circulating insulin level. This results in a rapid and dramatic fall in phosphate, potassium and magnesium - with an increasing extracellular fluid (ECF) volume.
- As the body tries to switch from catabolic (starvation mode) to using exogenous fuel sources, there is an increase in oxygen consumption, increased respiratory and cardiac workload (may precipitate acute heart failure and tachypnoea and make weaning from a ventilator difficult). Demand for nutrients and oxygen may outstrip supply. Both of the above can lead to multiple organ failure; respiratory and/or cardiac failure, arrhythmias, rhabdomyolysis, seizures or coma, red cell and/or leukocyte dysfunction.
- The gut may have undergone some atrophy with starvation and, with the return of enteral feeding, there may be intolerance to the feed, with nausea and diarrhoea.
- Feeds should be started slowly and the electrolytes closely monitored and adequately replaced to avoid these problems developing.
