Logging food by typing it in

Not every food has a barcode. Fresh fruit, a homemade soup, a slice of toast: these you can simply type in. MigraineMe will look up the nutrition for you from the USDA food database. You do not need to know the calories or the vitamins. Just the name of the food. Logging food inside MigraineMe is a Premium feature.

This is a slower way to log than scanning, but it works for almost anything you eat.

Step by step

Step 1: Open the Diet screen

1. Open MigraineMe.
2. Tap the Monitor tab at the bottom.
3. Scroll to the Diet card and tap it. (You can also get here from the Food card on the Log tab.)

If the card is not there, tap Configure Monitor at the top of the Monitor tab and switch the Diet card on.

Step 2: Find the search box

1. In the Add Food area (it says "Search the USDA database, scan a barcode, or photograph your meal"), tap the Search foods box.
2. Your keyboard will pop up.

Step 3: Type the food name

1. Type the name of the food in plain English. For example: banana, scrambled eggs, white rice, chicken soup.
2. Wait a moment. A list of matching foods appears under Search Results.

Tips:

• Start with the simple word first (try apple before apple pie).
• Spelling does not have to be perfect. The search is forgiving.
• If you cooked the food yourself, try the main ingredient (for shepherd's pie, try beef and potato).

Step 4: Pick the closest match

1. Look down the list and find the food that is closest to what you actually ate.
2. Tap it once.
3. A window titled Add Food opens with the nutrition information.

Step 5: Set the amount

1. Look at the Servings row. It shows what one serving is, for example "1 serving = 40 g".
2. The app starts at one serving. Use the + and − to adjust in halves: 0.5 for half, 2 for a double portion.
3. Close enough is fine. You do not have to be exact.

Step 6: Save

1. Pick a Meal Type (breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack).
2. Tap Add.
3. The food appears in Today's Log on the Diet screen.

A few tricks for common meals

1. Toast with butter. Log white bread, 1 slice and butter, 1 teaspoon separately.
2. Coffee with milk. Log coffee and milk separately, with half a serving of milk for a splash. This way the caffeine and the calcium are both counted.
3. Mixed plate. Log each big item on the plate as its own line. You do not have to be exact.
4. Restaurant meal. Pick the closest known dish. If you had a chicken curry at a restaurant, log chicken curry, 1 serving. The app will get close enough to spot triggers.

If the search comes back empty

1. Check your spelling.
2. Try a simpler word. "Spag bol" might not work. Try spaghetti bolognese.
3. Try the main ingredient.
4. As a last resort, scan a similar packaged food using the barcode scanner. See the article "Logging food with the barcode scanner".

What if I am missing some nutrients?

MigraineMe tracks more than thirty nutrients, including caffeine, magnesium, riboflavin, and vitamin B12. Most typed-in foods include most of these. Some short database entries only include calories. If you find that your trigger list seems thin, try logging your food using full names (instead of "snack" or "lunch") so the vitamins and minerals come through.

If you get stuck, write to us at help@migraineme.app and tell us which food the app cannot find.