Nutrition Software
January 19, 2010 10:37 AM Subscribe
I'm in search of nutrition software that tracks more than calories, fat, and carbs.
Essentially I'm looking for software that tracks complete nutrient content (iron, vitamin B, etc); in addition to the calories, fats, and carbs usually aimed at the casual dieting/fitness crowd.
So, while SparkPeople and FitDay are great for what they do, I'm in need of a lot more detail/tracking/reporting ability. Something that allows me to actually view how many specific nutrients I've consumed in a day.
Format unimportant: online, Mac, PC. Just hoping for some good suggestions!
Essentially I'm looking for software that tracks complete nutrient content (iron, vitamin B, etc); in addition to the calories, fats, and carbs usually aimed at the casual dieting/fitness crowd.
So, while SparkPeople and FitDay are great for what they do, I'm in need of a lot more detail/tracking/reporting ability. Something that allows me to actually view how many specific nutrients I've consumed in a day.
Format unimportant: online, Mac, PC. Just hoping for some good suggestions!
Huh? FitDay reports on all sorts of nutrients, even in their free version. Right below the food list for any day, there's a Calories tab listing macro-nutrients, but if you click the Nutrition tab, you get an extremely detailed breakdown. The only important one they seem to miss is folic acid. You can even set targets for specific nutrients.
posted by maudlin at 10:49 AM on January 19, 2010
posted by maudlin at 10:49 AM on January 19, 2010
To clarify the Sparkpeople response...
On the nutrition page, click Change Nutrition Goals at the top of the page, then click Add Another Nutrient at the bottom. You can add up to 75 nutrients to track, and I think you can edit the upper/lower limits to the recommended range.
After you enter your foods for the day, your new nutrients only show the daily totals at the bottom of the page (rather than showing each item with all its nutrients). But you can click on Show Full Report which will break it all down by item, and you can export that data to a file, which is suitable for importing into Excel.
posted by CathyG at 10:56 AM on January 19, 2010
On the nutrition page, click Change Nutrition Goals at the top of the page, then click Add Another Nutrient at the bottom. You can add up to 75 nutrients to track, and I think you can edit the upper/lower limits to the recommended range.
After you enter your foods for the day, your new nutrients only show the daily totals at the bottom of the page (rather than showing each item with all its nutrients). But you can click on Show Full Report which will break it all down by item, and you can export that data to a file, which is suitable for importing into Excel.
posted by CathyG at 10:56 AM on January 19, 2010
NutritionData.com lets you input foods, build recipes, and make a daily tally of everything you eat that shows everything you want. It's a little tedious to get started inputting foods, but gets simpler once you have built a library of the things you eat most. It shows all major macro and micro nutrients, the breakdown of your protein by amino acids, the glycemic index of your foods, and even an inflammation factor score. It's extremely comprehensive for the foods that it knows about, but sometimes you will encounter a food it doesn't have, and you'll have to settle for the closest thing in their database.
posted by slow graffiti at 11:01 AM on January 19, 2010
posted by slow graffiti at 11:01 AM on January 19, 2010
Response by poster: It's possible that both FitDay and SparkPeople have updated their software since I last used either of them, but I can guarantee that neither had what I was looking when I tested them out. (It's been a while)
Anyone know if actual Nutritionists use something specific?
posted by TwisterSister at 11:06 AM on January 19, 2010
Anyone know if actual Nutritionists use something specific?
posted by TwisterSister at 11:06 AM on January 19, 2010
There's also that mypyramidtracker.gov -- we had to use this in my Nutrition class. It'll take day by day, and give you alllll kinds of data (iron? folate? fiber? potassium? sodium?). It's online, and sometimes is kinda slow, but it was really interesting to use.
posted by circle_b at 11:07 AM on January 19, 2010
posted by circle_b at 11:07 AM on January 19, 2010
IIRF, the (free) USDA MyPyramid tracker did show data for other nutritional goals, vitamins, etc. I believe it is aimed less as a diet tool and more as a total nutrition tool. I used it religiously for awhile.
posted by bunnycup at 11:07 AM on January 19, 2010
posted by bunnycup at 11:07 AM on January 19, 2010
The Daily Plate makes a "custom nutrition label" in their pay version. It looks just like the nutrition facts label on packaged foods, except it tracks vitamins and minerals in addition to the basic stuff.
posted by rabbitrabbit at 11:22 AM on January 19, 2010
posted by rabbitrabbit at 11:22 AM on January 19, 2010
Yeah, Fitday already does that. You can track anything with it that appears on a nutrition label.
posted by Nattie at 11:49 AM on January 19, 2010
posted by Nattie at 11:49 AM on January 19, 2010
yes, fitday. it's had this capability since at least 2003 (the earliest i can recall using it). you may need to drill down into some additional reports, because the main screen doesn't display all that detailed nutrient info.
posted by xiaolongbao at 4:30 PM on January 19, 2010
posted by xiaolongbao at 4:30 PM on January 19, 2010
CRON-O-Meter tracks macronutrients, micronutrients, vitamins, minerals and whatever you want to add to it. You can also add complete recipes and meals, and it will track those. Works in Windows, Mac and Linux. Very nice.
posted by Cobalt at 9:51 PM on January 19, 2010
posted by Cobalt at 9:51 PM on January 19, 2010
I second CRON-o-Meter; it's free & I think it's exactly what you're looking for.
posted by insectosaurus at 7:07 AM on January 20, 2010
posted by insectosaurus at 7:07 AM on January 20, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Admiral Haddock at 10:40 AM on January 19, 2010