Incorrect CalorieCounts in the Database Grrr!

susiesweets

Is anyone else frustrated :explode: with pulling foods out of the list in the database only to find that they do not match the nutritional values listed on the items you are adding that are sitting in front of you plain as day on the label. Specifically frustrating is the "Corrected" items that are just copies of the same incorrect information found in the listing before it. :noway: I find that Bread is increasingly difficult to find a correct value on even when the exact name and brand and country (US vs Canada) are found in a search. :mad: Is this a problem for anyone else out there? I just quick added 140 calories to my day because I've already had two items listed too low in the database by the time I got to a snack after lunch. Anyone know if there is a way to remove items from showing up or saving items already listed to the "my foods" tab without having to painstakingly add them in line by line yourself?

wolfchild59

I think that when you enter online you have the option to edit the already existing food item. So all you have to do is change the wrong info and then the updated item is saved to your foods.

But if you're on the app the only way to do it is entering it as a new food. I do that all time and it barely takes but a moment to do and it's worth it for me to have all the correct info.

Fair warning though, it never hurts to double check even food items you've entered yourself and eat frequently. If notice any new packaging, labeling, or anything on your food then always double check the entry because something may have changed. I've had to update multiple items due to changes by the manufacturer.

assilembob

My biggest pet peeve is that only calories are entered and NOTHING ELSE. Or I go to enter some steamed broccoli and I end up with 2500 mg of sodium on my diary. I don't get how people can enter it so wrong.

garywizau

This is my one huge huge HUGE gripe about MFP, which I otherwise love, and it completely messes up my entire food logging plan. I don't know whether the MFP people read this, but there are three ENORMOUS problems:

1. Incomplete entries (as assilembob mentions). You think you're compiling nutrition information, and discover that your nutrition profile is meaningless because many entries on your list have incorrect or missing information.

2. Completely stupid entries which refer to serving sizes such as "1 piece", "1 ball", "1 chunk", which could mean 1oz, 2oz, or 10oz of food. No possible way to use those entries, and they dominate.

3. No way to sort or tell which of the entries may have been approved, or rated in any way. They are all just one big mess.

It's exasperating.

For example, I made my own Falafel yesterday, and wanted to add it to my list. I bake them (to make them lower in calories), and they are about the size of a tablespoon... so I did a search for "Baked Falafel"...

Baked Falafel Balls - 1 ball - 160 calories
Mini Falafel Bites - Baked - 3 mini Falafels, 140 calories
Baked Falafel, 1 piece baked, 35 calories
Baked Falafel, homemade, 1 patty, 82 calories
Baked Vegan Falafel - 1 ball - 42 calories
Baked Falafel - 4 falafels - 166 calories
Baked Falafel - 3 falafels (1/4 recipe) - 140 calories

Those are the top 8 entries, and there are two more pages. Only ONE lists weight, and it is incomplete and incorrect.

MFP should just completely delete entries like this. It's useless, wastes my time, and worse, makes my results completely wrong. The only choice I have is to create my own entries for chickpeas (another one that is hard to figure out from the database), onions, garlic, parsley, and essentially create my own recipe for every single item I eat. Useless!

It is MFP's complete failure here. They should never allow people to enter recipes without a weight, or some concrete portion size which is not "subject to interpretation".

It's crazy, and I think ultimately it means that people are getting incorrect results, and not achieving their goals.

wolfchild59

Quick question - If you made your own falafel from a recipe or even a mix, why would you depend on the entries already in the database anyway? In that case, just enter your recipe into the recipe builder and get the exact nutrition stats for the food you made yourself. That way you know that they are accurate and complete.

And if a company or dining establishment gives me nutritional information as "1 serving", "1 plate", "1 patty", etc, and I'm entering that data into MFP because I'm eating it, that's what I'm going to enter as my serving size. I'm not going to order my food to go, head home, weigh or measure it out, and then create an entry in a specific measurement.

There have been a few times that I've been at home while entering a new food item like bread, cookies, or a nutrition bar, that I decide to enter in grams since I'm at home with my scale and do prefer as much accuracy as possible in my logging so grams vs. "1 slice", "2 cookies", or "1 bar" will be more precise in the long run. But that's just not always a possible option.

judykat7

I think that when you enter online you have the option to edit the already existing food item. So all you have to do is change the wrong info and then the updated item is saved to your foods.

But if you're on the app the only way to do it is entering it as a new food. I do that all time and it barely takes but a moment to do and it's worth it for me to have all the correct info.

Fair warning though, it never hurts to double check even food items you've entered yourself and eat frequently. If notice any new packaging, labeling, or anything on your food then always double check the entry because something may have changed. I've had to update multiple items due to changes by the manufacturer.

How do you edit it online? I am new and never even could tell it was wrong until I got it in my diary and then had to start over. Thanks in advance!

wolfchild59

I think that when you enter online you have the option to edit the already existing food item. So all you have to do is change the wrong info and then the updated item is saved to your foods.

But if you're on the app the only way to do it is entering it as a new food. I do that all time and it barely takes but a moment to do and it's worth it for me to have all the correct info.

Fair warning though, it never hurts to double check even food items you've entered yourself and eat frequently. If notice any new packaging, labeling, or anything on your food then always double check the entry because something may have changed. I've had to update multiple items due to changes by the manufacturer.

How do you edit it online? I am new and never even could tell it was wrong until I got it in my diary and then had to start over. Thanks in advance!

When you search for a food in the database you get that list on the left side. When you click on a food option from that list, the amount and quantity appear on the right. There is also a link that says "nutrition info" in that same area. When you click on that it gives you the full breakdown of information and then asks if the data is correct or not. When you click that it isn't, you can then edit the information that isn't correct before entering it into your log for the day.