Database Improvement Suggestions

kszumacher

Hi, I'm a new / returning user and I like this website which is why I came back. I have noticed that there is a lot of user content, and I'm glad to be able to contribute.

However I feel the site requires a bit more oversight beyond people 'confirming' data. Specifically I am speaking here of multiple entries for the identical product, be it a boxed item or fruits and vegetables. Also there is an issue with there being too many entries for fruits. I can find a 'banana' a 'raw banana' and 'generic fruit banana' where each listing has servings listed in different values be it cups, grams or per unit (1 medium banana).

Regarding boxed items:
I propose a function which could recognize a similar item based on nutritional info and some similarities in name, to avoid there being multiple entries for 'Lean Cuisine Chicken' and 'LC Chicken' for example.

Regarding unpackaged foods (fruits/veggies/meats etc):
I propose that food amounts be standardized to the way they are on food packaging: 1 serving = 5 crackers or 30 g. This makes the most sense as foods do not maintain the same volume chopped versus whole but always have a stable caloric value per gram.

The above two suggestions would help the site operators limit the number of duplicate entries streamlining the database, helping the members use the site faster and more effectively. This would be beneficial to all of us, and making food entry faster would encourage more people to join and more people to lose weight.

Looking forward to hearing what the developers and other members think.

mfp_1

Lots of us agree with you. You mention many known big issues. But I don't think it's going to change.