NutritionData.com

January 19, 2005 10:57 AM

NutritionData.com is a free and very useful website for detailed nutrition information, including the in-vogue Glycemic Index; their own Fullness Factor, a measure of how filling foods are per calorie; and others. Their Better Choices Diet makes use of the Fullness Factor to make consuming less energy than you use easier to do without going hungry. Previously mentioned in response to this AskMe question.
posted by callmejay (13 comments total)

Other useful free nutrition sites include Fitday.com, which lets you track your food and exercise, and The Hacker's Diet, a free ebook which offers advice on diet and weightloss from an engineering perspective.

Mostly via del.icio.us.
posted by callmejay at 10:58 AM on January 19, 2005

The USDA also has a downloadable nutrient database for the DIY inclined. I saved myself $20 and just created an MS Access database. The nutrition data has proved invaluable in my transition to an all-butter diet.
posted by Loser at 11:07 AM on January 19, 2005

I seem to have put on some weight over the holidays. I need to loose 15 - 20 lbs before climbing season comes. Thanks for the references guys.
posted by trbrts at 11:39 AM on January 19, 2005

Oh man, nutritiondata.com is fantastic! Especially the 'pantry' portion of the site. It looks like they track every single bit of nutritional information re: just about every food.
posted by lyam at 12:13 PM on January 19, 2005

Finally! A sensible guide to weight loss. I get so pissed off at people who say stuff like "I'm on atkins but I keep gaining weight!" Maybe it's because you're eating more calories than you're burning, dumbass. There is no way to lose weight other than to eat less and burn more. It's that simple.

I wish their Pantry feature had more foods in it though. I have found that an Excel spreadsheet is much easier for tallying daily calorie intake. Then again, I'm a little more neurotic about this than most people as I have to maintain my 34-24-35 figure as a job requirement... hey, it beats sticking your finger down your throat after every meal.
posted by salad spork at 12:17 PM on January 19, 2005

Great resource, sane and practical. The pantry interface could use some improvement -- it looks like a pretty time-consuming task to stock your pantry before you can create your running daily total. I'm OK with a calculator and notebook.
posted by Miko at 1:18 PM on January 19, 2005

Thank you for these fine links! I've been looking for something like this!
posted by Hands of Manos at 1:50 PM on January 19, 2005

ms spork, one might think that the energy necessary to be a full time office bitch would burn enough calories to maintain your slender shape!
posted by billsaysthis at 2:18 PM on January 19, 2005

Related question: is there any food requiring more calories to be digested then the calories it offers to the body ? I guess such a food could be used as a filler for "when hunger strikes" moments.
posted by elpapacito at 2:43 PM on January 19, 2005

billsaysthis: not my current job, but my anticipated soon-to-be career. you think i want to be an office bitch forever?


elpapacito: celery, cucumbers, iceberg lettuce... things like that. not very filling though.
posted by salad spork at 2:49 PM on January 19, 2005

elpapacito: I've always heard that celery has a negative net caloric value.
posted by notsnot at 3:01 PM on January 19, 2005

According to this Snopes article the legend about Celery is true. Celery industry can send me. saòad spork and notsnot a check if they really really want :)
posted by elpapacito at 3:34 PM on January 19, 2005

salad spork: if you're having a good time while those around you moan constantly (but not in that good way), then you could probably keep at it for years.
posted by billsaysthis at 3:50 PM on January 20, 2005