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List, filter or add preferences for an alert for possible allergens

John_Price80
John_Price80 Posts: 2 Member
in Feature Suggestions and Ideas
I have coeliacs disease and must avoid gluten (Barley, Rye, Wheat and *Oats). It would be great to have any allergens which are listed in the ingredients noted in the app. With this info a user could add preferences in their profile so an item they should avoid could be noted. I appreciate there could be concerns about accurate information but perhaps this could be boilerplated and users aware that there could be inaccuracies before enabling.
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  • John_Price80
    John_Price80 Posts: 2 Member
    John_Price80 wrote: »
    I have coeliacs disease and must avoid gluten (Barley, Rye, Wheat and *Oats). It would be great to have any allergens which are listed in the ingredients noted in the app. With this info a user could add preferences in their profile so an item they should avoid could be noted. I appreciate there could be concerns about accurate information but perhaps this could be boilerplated and users aware that there could be inaccuracies before enabling.

    *Some Coeliacs cannot have any Oats, otherwise it must be gluten free oats
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 18,600 Member
    edited January 9
    The trouble I see (as someone who has been using MFP a long time and is also in a celiac household) are that:
    1. no ingredients are noted in the database at all, it would be completely new functionality and the space required to store that info would be enormous
    2. It's a worldwide site, and ingredients/allergens vary from country to country, as do reporting requirements
    3. users are already slack as all get out just adding the nutrition accurately and unless it's specifically applicable to them, the vast majority won't bother adding ingredients/allergens to new entries
    4. the way it tends to work is that you search the food you have, or are intending to have, rather than searching to find something to have (meaning at the time you search, you generally know what you're having and therefore should know if your allergen is in it).

    While, as someone who is very conscious of gluten contamination, I can very much see the benefit in an app that tells you whether your allergen is in a product, I don't think this is that app. A disclaimer that it might not be accurate is only useful when there's still some degree of accuracy, but in this case you'd have to double check everything every time anyway, and I can see people who ignored the disclaimer and just trusted being very upset when they got glutened.

    Frankly, I love MFP and have gotten a lot out of it, but accuracy, currency and precision are NOT its strong points... I wouldn't trust it with allergy information as far as I could punt it.
  • Jean
    Jean Posts: 909 MFP Staff
    I really love the idea! I just passed this along to our internal team to think more about implementing, along with enhancing the current food database experience. Thank you for your insight on this!
  • claireychn074
    claireychn074 Posts: 1,733 Member
    Alatariel75 wrote: »
    The trouble I see (as someone who has been using MFP a long time and is also in a celiac household) are that:
    1. no ingredients are noted in the database at all, it would be completely new functionality and the space required to store that info would be enormous
    2. It's a worldwide site, and ingredients/allergens vary from country to country, as do reporting requirements
    3. users are already slack as all get out just adding the nutrition accurately and unless it's specifically applicable to them, the vast majority won't bother adding ingredients/allergens to new entries
    4. the way it tends to work is that you search the food you have, or are intending to have, rather than searching to find something to have (meaning at the time you search, you generally know what you're having and therefore should know if your allergen is in it).

    While, as someone who is very conscious of gluten contamination, I can very much see the benefit in an app that tells you whether your allergen is in a product, I don't think this is that app. A disclaimer that it might not be accurate is only useful when there's still some degree of accuracy, but in this case you'd have to double check everything every time anyway, and I can see people who ignored the disclaimer and just trusted being very upset when they got glutened.

    Frankly, I love MFP and have gotten a lot out of it, but accuracy, currency and precision are NOT its strong points... I wouldn't trust it with allergy information as far as I could punt it.
    Got to be honest, I wouldn’t trust ANY app to notify me about the two food allergies I have. The results, if I get it wrong, are not worth thinking about.
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 18,600 Member
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    Alatariel75 wrote: »
    The trouble I see (as someone who has been using MFP a long time and is also in a celiac household) are that:
    1. no ingredients are noted in the database at all, it would be completely new functionality and the space required to store that info would be enormous
    2. It's a worldwide site, and ingredients/allergens vary from country to country, as do reporting requirements
    3. users are already slack as all get out just adding the nutrition accurately and unless it's specifically applicable to them, the vast majority won't bother adding ingredients/allergens to new entries
    4. the way it tends to work is that you search the food you have, or are intending to have, rather than searching to find something to have (meaning at the time you search, you generally know what you're having and therefore should know if your allergen is in it).

    While, as someone who is very conscious of gluten contamination, I can very much see the benefit in an app that tells you whether your allergen is in a product, I don't think this is that app. A disclaimer that it might not be accurate is only useful when there's still some degree of accuracy, but in this case you'd have to double check everything every time anyway, and I can see people who ignored the disclaimer and just trusted being very upset when they got glutened.

    Frankly, I love MFP and have gotten a lot out of it, but accuracy, currency and precision are NOT its strong points... I wouldn't trust it with allergy information as far as I could punt it.
    Got to be honest, I wouldn’t trust ANY app to notify me about the two food allergies I have. The results, if I get it wrong, are not worth thinking about.

    The only one I trust at all is the Celiac Australia app we have, because they're the certifying body here in Aust for confirmed GF foods, and even then I'm cautious!
  • claireychn074
    claireychn074 Posts: 1,733 Member
    Alatariel75 wrote: »
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    Alatariel75 wrote: »
    The trouble I see (as someone who has been using MFP a long time and is also in a celiac household) are that:
    1. no ingredients are noted in the database at all, it would be completely new functionality and the space required to store that info would be enormous
    2. It's a worldwide site, and ingredients/allergens vary from country to country, as do reporting requirements
    3. users are already slack as all get out just adding the nutrition accurately and unless it's specifically applicable to them, the vast majority won't bother adding ingredients/allergens to new entries
    4. the way it tends to work is that you search the food you have, or are intending to have, rather than searching to find something to have (meaning at the time you search, you generally know what you're having and therefore should know if your allergen is in it).

    While, as someone who is very conscious of gluten contamination, I can very much see the benefit in an app that tells you whether your allergen is in a product, I don't think this is that app. A disclaimer that it might not be accurate is only useful when there's still some degree of accuracy, but in this case you'd have to double check everything every time anyway, and I can see people who ignored the disclaimer and just trusted being very upset when they got glutened.

    Frankly, I love MFP and have gotten a lot out of it, but accuracy, currency and precision are NOT its strong points... I wouldn't trust it with allergy information as far as I could punt it.
    Got to be honest, I wouldn’t trust ANY app to notify me about the two food allergies I have. The results, if I get it wrong, are not worth thinking about.

    The only one I trust at all is the Celiac Australia app we have, because they're the certifying body here in Aust for confirmed GF foods, and even then I'm cautious!

    I like to be different 🤣 I’m allergic to coriander and that isn’t a usual allergen so it’s not listed on any allergen sites I’ve found (yet). Cue speed reading of any shop bought produce to see if it’s in there. The annoying thing for me is when the ingredients list “spices”, as I then have to avoid it. (Coriander or cilantro as the US calls it, is in mixed spice “, which is used in a huge amount of foods both sweet and savoury.) I can’t have many shop bought cakes, mince pies or Christmas foodstuffs, curries, dips, flavourings or some stock cubes…it’s one of the reasons I cook pretty much from scratch.
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 18,600 Member
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    Alatariel75 wrote: »
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    Alatariel75 wrote: »
    The trouble I see (as someone who has been using MFP a long time and is also in a celiac household) are that:
    1. no ingredients are noted in the database at all, it would be completely new functionality and the space required to store that info would be enormous
    2. It's a worldwide site, and ingredients/allergens vary from country to country, as do reporting requirements
    3. users are already slack as all get out just adding the nutrition accurately and unless it's specifically applicable to them, the vast majority won't bother adding ingredients/allergens to new entries
    4. the way it tends to work is that you search the food you have, or are intending to have, rather than searching to find something to have (meaning at the time you search, you generally know what you're having and therefore should know if your allergen is in it).

    While, as someone who is very conscious of gluten contamination, I can very much see the benefit in an app that tells you whether your allergen is in a product, I don't think this is that app. A disclaimer that it might not be accurate is only useful when there's still some degree of accuracy, but in this case you'd have to double check everything every time anyway, and I can see people who ignored the disclaimer and just trusted being very upset when they got glutened.

    Frankly, I love MFP and have gotten a lot out of it, but accuracy, currency and precision are NOT its strong points... I wouldn't trust it with allergy information as far as I could punt it.
    Got to be honest, I wouldn’t trust ANY app to notify me about the two food allergies I have. The results, if I get it wrong, are not worth thinking about.

    The only one I trust at all is the Celiac Australia app we have, because they're the certifying body here in Aust for confirmed GF foods, and even then I'm cautious!

    I like to be different 🤣 I’m allergic to coriander and that isn’t a usual allergen so it’s not listed on any allergen sites I’ve found (yet). Cue speed reading of any shop bought produce to see if it’s in there. The annoying thing for me is when the ingredients list “spices”, as I then have to avoid it. (Coriander or cilantro as the US calls it, is in mixed spice “, which is used in a huge amount of foods both sweet and savoury.) I can’t have many shop bought cakes, mince pies or Christmas foodstuffs, curries, dips, flavourings or some stock cubes…it’s one of the reasons I cook pretty much from scratch.

    Oh, that's so frustrating!! Coriander shows up in the weirdest places. It's interesting how different countries have different allergens listed, I remember being really surprised to see celery listed as an allergen on a pack of soup, I had no idea it was a common enough allergen to need a listing.
  • claireychn074
    claireychn074 Posts: 1,733 Member
    Alatariel75 wrote: »
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    Alatariel75 wrote: »
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    Alatariel75 wrote: »
    The trouble I see (as someone who has been using MFP a long time and is also in a celiac household) are that:
    1. no ingredients are noted in the database at all, it would be completely new functionality and the space required to store that info would be enormous
    2. It's a worldwide site, and ingredients/allergens vary from country to country, as do reporting requirements
    3. users are already slack as all get out just adding the nutrition accurately and unless it's specifically applicable to them, the vast majority won't bother adding ingredients/allergens to new entries
    4. the way it tends to work is that you search the food you have, or are intending to have, rather than searching to find something to have (meaning at the time you search, you generally know what you're having and therefore should know if your allergen is in it).

    While, as someone who is very conscious of gluten contamination, I can very much see the benefit in an app that tells you whether your allergen is in a product, I don't think this is that app. A disclaimer that it might not be accurate is only useful when there's still some degree of accuracy, but in this case you'd have to double check everything every time anyway, and I can see people who ignored the disclaimer and just trusted being very upset when they got glutened.

    Frankly, I love MFP and have gotten a lot out of it, but accuracy, currency and precision are NOT its strong points... I wouldn't trust it with allergy information as far as I could punt it.
    Got to be honest, I wouldn’t trust ANY app to notify me about the two food allergies I have. The results, if I get it wrong, are not worth thinking about.

    The only one I trust at all is the Celiac Australia app we have, because they're the certifying body here in Aust for confirmed GF foods, and even then I'm cautious!

    I like to be different 🤣 I’m allergic to coriander and that isn’t a usual allergen so it’s not listed on any allergen sites I’ve found (yet). Cue speed reading of any shop bought produce to see if it’s in there. The annoying thing for me is when the ingredients list “spices”, as I then have to avoid it. (Coriander or cilantro as the US calls it, is in mixed spice “, which is used in a huge amount of foods both sweet and savoury.) I can’t have many shop bought cakes, mince pies or Christmas foodstuffs, curries, dips, flavourings or some stock cubes…it’s one of the reasons I cook pretty much from scratch.

    Oh, that's so frustrating!! Coriander shows up in the weirdest places. It's interesting how different countries have different allergens listed, I remember being really surprised to see celery listed as an allergen on a pack of soup, I had no idea it was a common enough allergen to need a listing.

    Yes I’ve seen celery listed often too - and like you I was surprised. It’s a disgusting vegetable but seems pretty innocuous to me!

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