Macro counter seems off

8mkwg5695s
8mkwg5695s Posts: 1 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi! Does anyone find that the macro counter seems off at times? It’s telling me things like strawberries have 8 grams of fat. It also says one of my foods highest in carbs are egg whites? I’m new to counting macros, but it seems equally hard to do when these counts aren’t accurate.

Replies

  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 35,138 Member
    There are lots of inaccurate entries in the food database. It's crowd-sourced, i.e. entered by regular MFP users like you and me. Some of them may not be as accuracy focused as you or me, unfortunately.

    If you want reasonably accurate macro totals, it's best to verify the food entry the first time you use it. Comparing to the packaging, or to a known valid source **, would be best. Once you log a food, it will stay in your recent/frequent foods (as long as you continue to eat it semi-frequently) and will pop up first when adding foods to your diary, IOW, you don't have to validate every time.

    ** Such as https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/

    If you choose food entries with inaccurate macros, your totals will be off. That's not the macro counter being off, it's inaccuracies in the food database. Some entries may even be accurate in some other country, but not yours. (Some countries list net carbs in "carbohydrates" on labels, while others list gross carbs (inclusive of fiber). The US lists gross carbs.)

    It's still common for macro totals not to balance exactly (calorically) with the calorie total because of rounding errors in the behind-the-scenes arithmetic, or from the tolerances manufacturers are allowed in food labeling. It should be close, though.

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