What says ANYTHING on here is correct?

eryops75

I'm trying to use myfitness pal to track my calorie intake, and it seems that any user (real, fake, troll, etc.) can submit food items for the rest of the community to search for and use in their daily logs. I happened to just misspell zucchini as 'zuchinni' and DOZENS if not hundreds of entries pop up. This is a complete and utter failure of this website, and we are all taking it on faith that people who can't spell a word can correctly input nutritional information.

Does Under Armour pay people to monitor this site? Is there any accountability at all?

PAV8888

No.

PAV8888

Which is why most of us will tell you to verify the entries that you use against the USDA standard reference database and/or against the packages themselves.

PAV8888

As you use entries they will populate on your most recent list and you will find out that the ones you tend to use more often will be quite handily available most of the time.

nooboots

eryops75 wrote: »

I'm trying to use myfitness pal to track my calorie intake, and it seems that any user (real, fake, troll, etc.) can submit food items for the rest of the community to search for and use in their daily logs. I happened to just misspell zucchini as 'zuchinni' and DOZENS if not hundreds of entries pop up. This is a complete and utter failure of this website, and we are all taking it on faith that people who can't spell a word can correctly input nutritional information.

Does Under Armour pay people to monitor this site? Is there any accountability at all?

Well its free to use so I dont think you're going to get a gold service

I double check everything and believe very little. Never use anything that is 'home made' (unless its your own recipe of course, Ive got loads of my own) and dont use 'servings' or cups, use weights by 100g and put in the weight you have used, like 1.1 for 110g for example

I check it against manufacturer amounts and when they vary I try to go midway between them all. Its amazing how many differences there are for something like raw chicken breast, no bone. Even from supermarket to supermarket they vary.

Annie_01

Or...enter your own entries. About 90-95% of the food listings that I use are ones that I have entered. I don't opt to share them so the ones that you are finding in error are not mine.

It is a lot of work at first but since I have a tendency to use the same ingredients each week so I rarely have to set up a new entry now.

cofresll1278

I use either the bar code on packages or the following website https://www.traditionaloven.com/foods/search

Jedikenji85

I use the bar code scan. but I can see how that would get annoying free or not,and they do offer a premium version which I have paid for in the past. It would be nice if we could at least remove the incorrect entries somehow.

Phirrgus

Well, my weightloss states pretty clearly that a lot of the entries are correct, or close, but it can be frustrating to no end sometimes tracking down correct info on less than common entries.....

PAV8888 wrote: »

Which is why most of us will tell you to verify the entries that you use against the USDA standard reference database and/or against the packages themselves.

So it does pay to do what PAV8888 suggests.

I try to keep in mind sometimes how frustrating it might be if we users could not make our own entries.

Redordeadhead

Jedikenji85 wrote: »

I use the bar code scan. but I can see how that would get annoying free or not,and they do offer a premium version which I have paid for in the past. It would be nice if we could at least remove the incorrect entries somehow.

Be aware that scanning a barcode still searches the same database of user entries and doesn't guarantee the information is accurate. Make sure to cross-check with the label!

MikePTY

This websites database is very easy to use if you are willing to put in just a moticum of effort. If choosing a new entry, either spend 2 seconds checking the label of your product, or do a 5 second Google search to see the nutrition. That will eliminate 99% of your issues.

rosebarnalice

I like the bar code scanner for packaged foods, and adding "USDA" when I search for produce (e.g. "tomato raw USDA").

Once you've confirmed a few entries yourself, they will start appearing in your "recent" and "frequent" lists, and you won't have to search for them anymore

apullum

Also, for packaged foods, different database entries are not solely due to user error. They may be due to manufacturers changing their recipes or selling slightly different recipes in different countries. Those are perfectly valid reasons for there to be different entries for the same food.

Bottom line is double check the label on prepackaged foods, and for raw foods, use USDA syntax as described above. Practice good information literacy habits—i.e., seek out reputable sources and fact check questionable info—rather than just assuming everything is wrong.

LyndaBSS

eryops75 wrote: »

I'm trying to use myfitness pal to track my calorie intake, and it seems that any user (real, fake, troll, etc.) can submit food items for the rest of the community to search for and use in their daily logs. I happened to just misspell zucchini as 'zuchinni' and DOZENS if not hundreds of entries pop up. This is a complete and utter failure of this website, and we are all taking it on faith that people who can't spell a word can correctly input nutritional information.

Does Under Armour pay people to monitor this site? Is there any accountability at all?

If you are that unhappy utilizing this site on your journey, perhaps there is something else out there better suited to your needs.

I use common sense when using the database. I learned early on that most entries are made by members. If I have a question about the values listed, I do 5 seconds of research offsite. Easy peasy.😀

rheddmobile

There’s a “report food” button if you find entries which are obviously in error.

Check your entries against the USDA, the manufacturer’s label or restaurant nutrition site, and most importantly against your common sense. I’ve seen nutrition info on the back of packages which was clearly in error, you always have to use your brain.

texasredreb

I've lost 42lbs in 4 months; so it doesn't really matter how "wildly inaccurate" the database it; it still works. I do a little bit of research and mentally toss out any big discrepancies I find in the database. It's not perfect, but it works.

nooboots

MikePTY wrote: »

This websites database is very easy to use if you are willing to put in just a moticum of effort. If choosing a new entry, either spend 2 seconds checking the label of your product, or do a 5 second Google search to see the nutrition. That will eliminate 99% of your issues.

You're right except for if you do a google search, say 'pineapple calories', it often brings up the nutrition on this site/fatsecret etc etc, all of these sites are filled with user inaccuracies so yes, do a google search but be careful where the information has come from

Jedikenji85

I always double check with what the package/label says and correct it manually myself if needed. I still wish there was a way to delete incorrect entries as it can be misleading/annoying.

gottswald

Jedikenji85 wrote: »

I always double check with what the package/label says and correct it manually myself if needed. I still wish there was a way to delete incorrect entries as it can be misleading/annoying.

Some incorrect entries were correct, but the company changed the formula and now the nutrition is different. Others may be incorrect for you but correct for others as the 'same' foods in other regions and countries may be formulated differently. I am always really hesitant to touch an entry, because it might be accurate for someone else.

middlehaitch

This thread may be of use to you.

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10621050/how-to-use-the-usda-food-database-mfp-food-database-for-accurate-logging/p1

Cheers, h.

kimondo666

there is a remedy, when ya dont know, pick the highest calorie one. Which look ok-ish. Carb is 4 kcal/ protein 4 kcal and fat is 9 calorie. With enough experience you ca easily tell which ones are bad.