Unknown calorie content :S

TamTam33
TamTam33 Posts: 8
edited September 27 in Food and Nutrition
Hi there.

I'm new to this site and the forum but thought i'd ask in case anyone can help me!

I often get the soup from my canteen at work (because it's gooooooooood and cheap :D) but i have no idea what the calorie content would be :S I understand that it's unlikely someone can just tell me what it is :P but i wouldn't be able to log it on my food diary without knowing the content etc! any suggestions from anyone as to what i should! (They have cream of mushroom tomorrow which is my absolute fav!) I have tried to ask but the catering company are 'unable to give an acurate or rough guide as it is prepared in batch and portioning is left up to the individual'.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Replies

  • Gawain
    Gawain Posts: 11 Member
    Your best bet is to search for an equivalent version from the database and try and pick the highest calorie option available, based on the quantity you think is served. That way you're probably over-estimating, and can keep your daily limit in check.
  • cfmusgrove
    cfmusgrove Posts: 46 Member
    just find a similar kind of soup in the food database and use that instead... if you don't feel confident with those numbers, then compare a few brands of that type of soup and pick one that has the most believable calories etc.
  • penny5
    penny5 Posts: 148 Member
    Hi. My suggestion would be to use what is in the food database already. A lot of times there is a "generic" label that you could use. This will at least give you a rough idea of what the calorie content is and you can always choose one from the database that has the highest calories just to be on the safe side. Have a great day :smile:
  • melaniecheeks
    melaniecheeks Posts: 6,349 Member
    It's going to be pretty difficult, especially if it varies from day to day! But if it's something that you enjoy and it fits with your daily lifestyle, then it would be a shame to give it up just cos you cant get the calories exact.

    Firstly, remember that everything you log in your food diary is an estimate. Unless it's a prepackaged meal (and you don't want too many of those) it wont be EXACTLY 100g of this or 35g of that.

    I'd check the database for something close: maybe look for homemade cream of mushroom soup. Creamy soups are going to have a much higher calorie and fat content than vegetable ones. If you really cant find something similar, do a "quick add" of about 350 cals.
  • sam23030
    sam23030 Posts: 76
    In that situation I would search on the database for similar items, look at a few listings and see the general calorie content, make an educated guess with this and maybe estimate slightly over just to be sure.

    It's very difficult with unlisted foods but sometimes I just break it down to the individual parts that might be in it and try to calculate the overall listing that way but its never going to be greatly accurate!
  • shellgib
    shellgib Posts: 196 Member
    I agree with what everyone else says...plus i use this government website that is the standard for all nutritional info...very accurate for lots of things, but of course things are made differently so the things that are 'recipe' driven may vary....

    http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/
  • TamTam33
    TamTam33 Posts: 8
    Thank you all so much! Will take your advice and have a look-see at others on the database. Struggling to keep my calories up to what it says i should be having anyways let alone exercise calories on top! lol! not a problem i expected to have! :D
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