New Member--Database Practically Useless!

yeah, yeah, we all know, your perfect.

I am happy with the database coz i entered food item i ate & I compared to what's on the packaging & it matched perfectly.

I agree, I've ran into the same problem. I try to look at at least 2 or 3 database entries and if they vary, I'll do a quick search on Google. Others need to be careful when logging food!

Eggs depend on several aspects: size of the egg, how much butter is used in the scrambling the two major ones.
Have a sense of what exactly you are eating, and the database is quite good.
You just have to get better at using it.

There could be variances for many reasons, stick to your packaging and if you find one that hasn't been verified then fix it and then what's the problem?

I double check everything even if it looks right because I want to be certain I am logging correctly and I don't mind it.

Ahhhhh - first world problems. :grumble:

Use the barcode scanner and scan in the foods you eat. Then it will be in your database and you'll have the correct data.

If it doesn't have a barcode then use the median range entry or take the extra 2min to search it on USDA enter it and then you'll have it for the future!

Very harsh!

You can add your own values.

You should just read the nutrition labels on your food and enter it in that way. The database isn't perfect, but people eat a lot of different things and enter them in. If you have the app you can also scan barcodes. Which is accurate. Where there is a will there's a way.

The scanner isn't always accurate. My bottle of Fuze iced tea came up as a chicken wrap.

Also, people use different ingredients to make things (like your scrambled eggs, for example), so if you're not looking up a whole or pre-packaged food, you should just enter the ingredients separately, or create a recipe or meal so you have it for the next time.

Scan it again. That has happened to me too, but if I scan it again it will usually come up correct. I think it may misread on the fist attempt. But if the nutrition info is on the back of the item and the barcode doesn't work a manual search will still produce the right one - just match up the calories and macros!

It can be confusing and very annoying. I've built a lot of recipes for things I make/eat often using USDA measures - then I know exactly how many calories I'm eating in the food I prepare and I can quickly access them under recipes or my foods/meals.

Use the barcode scanner and scan in the foods you eat. Then it will be in your database and you'll have the correct data.

Hold on, there is a way to scan food items into your personal database, not the general database? Oh, please enlighten...

If you use the app to log food there is a little Barcode looking thing in the top right. Click that and it will bring up your camera. Find the barcode on your food and scan it (as if you were at the grocery). It will auto populate your nutrition info.

there are plenty of USDA entries in the data base - there are also MFP added entries that are accurate, just look for the ones without an * at the beginning.
for meats and produce, it helps if you search (for example) "lettuce raw" or "ground beef raw"
for dairy and eggs, just search for the basic form. so instead of "scrambled eggs" (even if thats exactly what you had) search for "egg raw" also "milk 2%" instead of using brand names.

My first post.

I have found using the database to enter foods I've eaten to be virtually useless.

Then why use it at all if it's useless to you? Yes, there is some clutter with certain entries, and you picked one of the only problems I personally have come across (that being eggs). However, for the most part I love the food database. I especially like how I can create large meals using the "Recipes" function, and then just enter 1 serving of that meal and log it simply when I eat it on subsequent days.

It's true that sometimes, when finding something specific, I have noticed certain values to be off. Sometimes it's only off by a few calories, sometimes it's way off, or certain nutritional values have been left off. I always go through and correct entries that I believe are misleading when I am logging my own food. Yes, this takes more time, but when you consider that people from other countries are entering things, and that certain brands may package or quantify their foods differently when shipping to other places, it's hardly anyone's fault that the caloric amounts differ. Perhaps there ARE eggs that are 150 cals each across the ocean, and are very very large. Ever think of that?

Besides, even when you're measuring your food, you're not going to be exact down to the last calorie ingested. Do you take off ten calories for the soup that sticks to the bowl when you're done, or the crumbs left on your plate? Of course not. But as long as you are at between a 15 and 20% deficit from your TDEE you will still lose weight, and if you are maintaining then as long as you are within the window for maintaining you will be fine. Best of luck to you.