Annunziata Giuseppe, Verde Ludovica, Falco Andrea, Savastano Silvia, Colao Annamaria, Muscogiuri Giovanna, Barrea Luigi
Facoltà di Scienze Umane, della Formazione e dello Sport, Università Telematica Pegaso, Via Porzio, Centro Direzionale, Isola F2, 80143 Naples, Italy.
Department of Public Health, University of Naples Federico II, Via Sergio Pansini 5, 80131 Naples, Italy.
Nutrients. 2025 Jan 24;17(3):422. doi: 10.3390/nu17030422.
Obesity is constantly growing worldwide, representing a serious concern also for healthcare costs. Current anti-obesity pharmacological strategies, although effective, represent a significant cost for the patient. Similarly, very low energy ketogenic therapy (VLEKT) protocols with replacement meals also have high costs.
The objective of this study was to estimate the average costs of a VLEKT protocol with replacement meals compared with those of isocaloric diets with fresh foods.
VLEKTs with replacement meals and fresh foods were developed considering an ideal young woman and man with grade II obesity (BMI ≥ 35.0 kg/m). The costs of the individual fresh foods were extrapolated from official Italian databases. The costs of replacement meals were obtained by consulting the catalogs of three companies specialized in VLEKTs operating in Italy.
On a monthly basis, VLEKT with fresh food had an average cost of EUR 253.44 and EUR 295.67, while VLEKT with replacement meals had an average cost of EUR 434.91 and EUR 535.99, for the woman and man, respectively.
Although more expensive than a common diet, VLEKT should be seen not only as a dietary method for losing weight, but as a non-pharmacological, medicalized nutritional therapy, useful for managing various conditions, even those not directly related to obesity. Like a drug therapy, VLEKT requires the use of specific products that entail a higher cost, to be borne by the patient, but whose benefits should be emphasized, which go beyond weight loss and concern general health, thus considering them as a targeted nutritional strategy.
肥胖在全球范围内持续增加，这也给医疗成本带来了严重问题。当前的抗肥胖药物策略虽然有效，但对患者来说成本高昂。同样，采用代餐的极低能量生酮疗法（VLEKT）方案成本也很高。
本研究的目的是评估采用代餐的VLEKT方案与采用新鲜食物的等热量饮食方案的平均成本。
针对一名理想的患有II级肥胖（BMI≥35.0kg/m²）的年轻女性和男性，制定了采用代餐和新鲜食物的VLEKT方案。从意大利官方数据库中推算出各种新鲜食物的成本。通过查阅意大利三家专门从事VLEKT业务的公司的产品目录，获取了代餐的成本。
按月计算，采用新鲜食物的VLEKT方案，女性平均成本为253.44欧元，男性为295.67欧元；而采用代餐的VLEKT方案，女性平均成本为434.91欧元，男性为535.99欧元。
虽然VLEKT比普通饮食更昂贵，但它不应仅仅被视为一种减肥的饮食方法，而应被视为一种非药物的、医学化的营养疗法，对管理各种病症都有用，甚至包括那些与肥胖无直接关系的病症。与药物治疗一样，VLEKT需要使用特定产品，这会带来更高的成本，需由患者承担，但其益处应得到强调，这些益处不仅限于减肥，还关乎整体健康，因此应将其视为一种有针对性的营养策略。
