Let's stop and think. This is a good thing.
The truth is, none of us know whether or not it's snake oil. Just because we don't have enough information to prove it isn't a farce (besides the founders' insistence on their good health), does not mean we have enough information to prove that it is.
Is it dangerous? Highly unlikely. The vast majority of early adopters will probably be people at least somewhat characteristic of this community, meaning smart enough to know that if something makes you feel awful, you should probably stop eating it. If you bought a month's supply, maybe you get burned a few hundred bucks and it wasn't the best decision. If you bought a week's supply, you tried it for a few days and felt terrible, just make the intelligent decision and stop eating it (or drinking or whatever the process of consumption should be called).
Whether or not the people behind this are looking out for everyone else, we don't know. But let's be honest, neither is McDonald's or even the businesses stocking microwave dinners in grocery stores. They're in it to make a profit, not to fill you with the proper nutrition. Frankly, the goal of many of the businesses in the food industry is to cause customers to crave the product, often at the expense of nutrition (i.e. by loading with sugar, conditioning the brain to crave more). To say that they know better than these 20-somethings who have been collecting some actual data besides "hm, tastes good" is exceptionally naive. Your average gym rat eats far healthier than a microwave dinner diet.
This could be bad. But none of us have the data to prove it. Until then, I'm hopeful. Innovation in this industry is long overdue.
To say that these 'kids' are too young or inexperienced to make a real innovation and prove us all wrong, is a shame, especially in this community.
Is it perfect for everyone? Doubtful.
Is it better, on average, than the diet many of us are consuming? Well, that just might be true.
Who are we to say it isn't?
Soylent Campaign
321–330 of 608 posts
Re: Soylent Campaign
#322Earlier quoted context omitted.
There's no reason why it wouldn't work. If a multivitamin works then this works too.
> If a multivitamin works then this works too. God, you are just embarrassing yourself now. Please just stop.
God, you are just embarrassing yourself now. Please just stop.
Actually, he's not. He's presenting an argument. You're presenting a personal attack.
What's distressing is that you're being upvoted for it.
Re: Soylent Campaign
#323Earlier quoted context omitted.
> This quote from General Mills is priceless There is a world of difference between "unsafe" and "unhealthy." I am not claiming that frozen dinners are healthy. Far from it - I avoid them like the plague. However, they are not going to land you in the hospital in the short term. > think that there may be some merit to the Soylent team and their claims The fundamental issue is that statements like "there may be some m…
>It is NOT sufficient for trying a radically new diet like this one. To you. It's your opinion, not mine. You could say "The FDA would strongly condemn something like this" or "I think this is unsafe" but you can't say it is not sufficient for everyone just because you feel that way. You can't make blanket claims that apply to all of humanity; being an absolutist only works if you're a Sith Lord.
> You can't make blanket claims that apply to all of humanity
Except Soylent are doing exactly that.
Re: Soylent Campaign
#324What, it's only at version 0.6!? I'll usually wait until my food at least matures to version 1.0.
Re: Soylent Campaign
#325Earlier quoted context omitted.
The founder has been doing this for 4 months and he is healthier than when he started. What makes you think this is a bad idea other than "waaahh they are not food scientists!"?
> The founder has been doing this for 4 months and he is healthier than when he started. The founder claims he is healthier than when he started. That's confirmation bias. We have no way of telling because this "experiment" is not at all scientific. When he started and people pointed out just how hopeless the experiment was we were told to shut up and let him get on with it because it was only him being affected and…
He has posted blood test results corroborating his claim of improved health. His blog is down right now unfortunately.
Re: Soylent Campaign
#326[deleted]
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Re: Soylent Campaign
#327Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm sitting this one out for a year. I expected Rob to run longer and more detailed trails than it appears he has. As in a few hundred people eating nothing but Soylent for a year. There will be problems with the initial manufacture, and he highlights them in the risks section. But I notice the lack of anyone from say a pharma QC background who would be able to control the risk of overdosing on an ingredient by prope…
> and a huge achievement Why will it be a huge achievement?
Well, if in a year, it hasn't gone horribly wrong, then he's produced something people can eat for a year without great ill effect. Someone will eat this for a year, so we will find out.
Most of it's demo will eat it about 50% of the time, eating conventional instant meals and restaurant foods the rest. If it's healthier, or at least different from 'mostly eating microwave lasagne', it should improve their health.
Also, I see it as a great way to control calories. I don't have a weight problem, but most people I do just eat huge portions and snacks. Measuring out powder will help them.
But that's if the guy who eats it all year doesn't lose a kidney month number 9 because they added too much Vitamin A and call his lawyer.
Re: Soylent Campaign
#328Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm sitting this one out for a year. I expected Rob to run longer and more detailed trails than it appears he has. As in a few hundred people eating nothing but Soylent for a year. There will be problems with the initial manufacture, and he highlights them in the risks section. But I notice the lack of anyone from say a pharma QC background who would be able to control the risk of overdosing on an ingredient by prope…
> and a huge achievement Why will it be a huge achievement?
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Re: Soylent Campaign
#329Earlier quoted context omitted.
> If a multivitamin works then this works too. God, you are just embarrassing yourself now. Please just stop.
Very eloquent arguments, you've thoroughly convinced me.
Just to be clear, you're embarrassing yourself because multivitamins are the modern equivalent of magical totems of other civilizations that we patronizingly mock.
Or, to reach more into our own history, they're the modern snake oil.
Re: Soylent Campaign
#330Earlier quoted context omitted.
Rather than have everyone in this thread call someone from your list of food scientists at UBC, perhaps you could call one and post the conversation for us. This would be a bit less time consuming for the food scientists.
[deleted]
No. I've demonstrated a simple way to do some due diligence. If people haven't done this themselves, then they are being fools.
You're willing to dismiss everyone as being fools for not taking the time to do what you're proposing, yet you won't do what you're proposing and post the results.