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Soylent Closes $50M Series B Round Led by GV

blog.soylent.com

521–530 of 665 posts

Re: Soylent Closes $50M Series B Round Led by GV

#521

Although I was initially brought onto the hype train by great marketing and the promises of health and complete nutrition, I realize that my initial reliance on Soylent was actually part of a deeper problem, brought on by problems such as depression and inappropriate time management. When in reality I should have had enough time to eat out or possibly even cook a meal, I found myself relying on Soylent. I didn't leav…

I got started on Soylent and Joylent while depressed and it kept me (more than I would be) healthy while I went along. I eventually turned back to cooking when I was out of depression and craved varied, richer taste and more control over the sugar/carb/fat levels in particular meals.

I think Soylent was a great crutch during my downtime. I don't think it encouraged depression. In my case I argue it kept my body healthy while my mind wasn't, which is itself a bonus.

Re: Soylent Closes $50M Series B Round Led by GV

#522
post #364
post #309

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Young folks with few savings taking a few months off work don't have three months of Soylent money ;-) thru-hiker here. I did it on $2k of credit cards, which is the least of anyone i met personally. a dehydrated meal with 350 calories costs $5 minimum, requires cooking (fuel cost/weight), and requires time/energy for your body to digest. a soylent powder meal costs $2.

You can easily have dehydrated meals for under 50cents that don't have the nutritional criticisms of soylent. It does require you to go to the supermarket, quickly buy some ingredients, and mix them together. Here is an example: You can just buy oats, skim milk powder, peanuts (a bit better if you buy them crushed, or crush them), raisens, and dehydrated fruit & berries. I also add almonds, walnuts, chocolate, coconu…

1/4 the price, but how much extra time does that take?

Not saying that's a bad option, just different.

Re: Soylent Closes $50M Series B Round Led by GV

#523

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed, while the intentions of Soylent are probably sincere, when I first heard about it my response was "nope nope nope". My parents were hippies and we grew/raised most of our food when I was a kid. But my grandparents had embraced the new space-age diet: margarine in place of butter, tang instead of orange juice, kraft instead of cheese, etc. I thought it tasted awful compared to real food. As we have found out,…

My great grandparents ate nothing but potatos, no thanks.

What's your point? My great grandparents were Italian and Irish.

Re: Soylent Closes $50M Series B Round Led by GV

#524

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> ... sucralose Funny how that information buried on the site. I've re-ordered a few times based on its (prominently featured) use of Isomaltulose, thinking that is where the sweetness came from. Some evidence that sucralose will spike insulin. Seems to jibe with personal experience. Will probably hold off until they eliminate sucralose. Perhaps trehalose?

I don't like artificial sweeteners because I am worried about changes in gut bacteria. There's some research suggesting it may.

Meaning they'll eventually become capable of digesting sucralose? Or that the artificial sugars are killing our gut bacteria. One I care about. Haha.

Re: Soylent Closes $50M Series B Round Led by GV

#525

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Quest Bars have better much macros (barely any net carbs, plenty of fiber and protons) than that, though you'd need to eat ~two to hit the same calorie count. Any reason it needs to be a drink?

Are they any good? The erythritol worried me a bit.

They are a bit hard, but filling. I microwave my chocolate chip ones to make a cookie.

Re: Soylent Closes $50M Series B Round Led by GV

#526

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ensure is a weight gain brand, which is also incidentally marketed as a meal replacement for everyone and their dog because why not - of course marketing will never tell anyone, "don't eat this, it's not for you". That's why it's an old people brand, it's for people who can't eat enough solid food to maintain their weight. Just compare the nutritional labels: Soylent (400 kcal) 21g fat 37g carbs (9g simple sugars, 3g…

The maltodextrin is the primary calorie source in Soylent, but it's a much slower absorbing sugar (higher glycemic index, so it doesn't completely fuck your blood sugar) than the plain old sucrose you get in literally every other meal replacement drink.

It's the other way around. Higher GI carbs will absorb quicker and cause spikes in blood sugar levels. Maltodextrin is considered a complex carb but it breaks down quickly into glucose so the impact on your blood sugar levels is on par with dextrose.

Every time someone talks about Soylent I always bring up the main ingredient, Malto, it's such a terrible substitute for real complex carbs (oats, brown rice, etc.). You may as well be pounding sugar all day. Maltodextrin is what I use in my post-workout shake to spike my insulin.

Re: Soylent Closes $50M Series B Round Led by GV

#527

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> the recent price increase for Canadian customers is highway robbery Could you explain? I just checked the prices for 12-packs of original soylent is CAD$3.56/bottle in Canada and USD$2.69/bottle in the US. That's an effective exchange rate of 1.36 CAD/USD, and the current exchange (as I type this) is 1.37 CAD/USD. Or are you just complaining about an overall recent price increase? I have been paying CAD$29 per 12-p…

The $3.56/bottle you see on their website when switched to Canada as your location is not CAD, It's USD. I just ordered a 12 pack at $3.75 a bottle ($45/case - the price shown when you're not subscribing) and was charged $45USD which turned out to be $61.64 on my credit card, or $5.14CAD a bottle.

Wow, jeez, the ratio was so close I just assumed. You select a Canadian flag on the website, pay with a Canadian credit card, deliver to a Canadian address, and they charge you in US dollars without mentioning it anywhere (and all prices unmarked USD vs CAD). Unreal.

Re: Soylent Closes $50M Series B Round Led by GV

#528

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Products for people on feeding tubes like Jevity? Last I checked Soylent contained Sucralose (Splenda).

> ... sucralose Funny how that information buried on the site. I've re-ordered a few times based on its (prominently featured) use of Isomaltulose, thinking that is where the sweetness came from. Some evidence that sucralose will spike insulin. Seems to jibe with personal experience. Will probably hold off until they eliminate sucralose. Perhaps trehalose?

Huh, I thought they got rid of sucralose in 1.7; it's clearly there in 1.8 though.

Re: Soylent Closes $50M Series B Round Led by GV

#529

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I never understood Soylent. Why not simple, convenient, repetitive meals instead? Why not a protein shake and a banana if occasional liquid meal replacements are needed?

> Why not simple, convenient, repetitive meals instead? Name one that a) provides a proper amount of needed nutrients and b) is as simple and convenient as Soylent (or equivalents).

MetRX

Re: Soylent Closes $50M Series B Round Led by GV

#530

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed, while the intentions of Soylent are probably sincere, when I first heard about it my response was "nope nope nope". My parents were hippies and we grew/raised most of our food when I was a kid. But my grandparents had embraced the new space-age diet: margarine in place of butter, tang instead of orange juice, kraft instead of cheese, etc. I thought it tasted awful compared to real food. As we have found out,…

Your grand grand parents probably died of polio or something, so I am not sure if taking their advice on health is a good idea.

It's only bad advice if they died of malnutrition
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