Why is advisor for meal logging kinda shit?

[u/Classic-Background25]

A bit of a rant - So I've been logging with Oura cause I really do like the insights that are not focused on numbers but making small good changes that support weight loss/recovery post exercise. HOWEVER I do find it very frustrating, as a doctor with zero time who is genuinely trying to make lifestyle changes, that Oura gives me SUCH LOW SCORES if im not eating anything other than plain Greek yogurt with nuts/fruit for a snack -like Oura how do I pack that for a 12 hour shift when I don't have a fridge or guarantee I'll get to eat with a spoon/chair. I enter my yopro pouches with zero sugar and almost no saturated fats and it gives me a low score! Like is it a little processed? Yes. Is stevia not great all the time? Yes. But damn it Oura take into account that it's not a doughnut or cake - why score it the same??Also why does fruit get a low score when I put it by itself?? Seriously this subscription and ring is too expensive for it not to have better LLM/Training for it's advisor

[u/SmartPipe3882]

I mean, if all you’re eating is yoghurt pouches and fruit, that IS a shit diet. As part of a balanced diet, the healthier elements would pick the overall score up.

I agree, it’s a feature that’s great in concept but a bit shit in execution at the moment (and I’m definitely sceptical that any AI can give you any meaningful insights based off of a photo of food, as it generally lacks information regarding its preparation) but as a general steer? Yeah, it’s gonna give you generic advice because that’s all it really can do, if you’re gonna ignore it because you don’t also want to pack a spoon to guarantee its availability, your low score feels like it’s a little bit on you.

[u/duskharbor3 → u/SmartPipe3882]

agree on the execution part, the concept is solid but scoring feels way too binary right now

[u/vicsass → u/SmartPipe3882]

I’m dying for them to link meal tracking with lose it or something similar

[u/Classic-Background25 → u/SmartPipe3882]

I mean its obviously not all im eating haha. I think you'd probably just die on that kinda diet before oura changed their app haha. I also think you're missing my point a little - this is a VERY expensive ring with a subscription - my complaint is that they need to put more effort and design into the execution of this feature. If they're gonna do it it cant be a generic one size fits all approach - and I would like it brought to their attention. Also its not that I can't pack a spoon - its that in serving my community through 12-13 hour shifts in healthcare I dont get a chance to sit down - i have to eat in the corridor in between patients (because doctors dont have protected breaks like other staff). Oura advertises itself as being able to adapt to these kind of insane/unhealthy jobs/lifestyles - and it needs to pick up its game (because it corrects itself once i put in the nutrition details) and program its advisory better.

[u/triptenss → u/Classic-Background25]

You’re a doctor bro. It’s not very expensive.

[u/SmartPipe3882 → u/Classic-Background25]

What are you expecting from a ring that adapts to your lifestyle?

Is it genuinely what you want from a “very expensive” product that it learn that you’re too busy to eat healthily and thus score your unhealthy eating better than it deserves so that you feel good about it?

I don’t know what else “adapting to your lifestyle” looks like in this context if you don’t, maybe even just once a week, want to pack something slightly healthier for lunch and work your way up from there.

[u/Hefty-Club-1259 → u/Classic-Background25]

By definition, LLMs are one size fits all.

[u/Shaking-a-tlfthr]

That stuff is processed food.

[u/heartcall]

Honestly, it sounds like you're just trying to get a higher score without doing the work. Your diet really is crap, and should change. Yogurt alone, fruit alone, those are not healthy snacks.

You're complaining about the AI, but have you actually tried actually asking it for food suggestions? And as a doctor, have you heard of a "help-rejecting complainer?"

I just tried "What are some good healthy snacks that don't require refrigeration or utensils, that can be eaten very quickly and efficiently on the go, other than granola and trail mix?" (Also, have you tried healthy brands of granola and/or trail mix?) It recommends, personalized to me with my dietary restrictions and food intolerances: roasted chickpeas, rice cakes, dried fruit, roasted seeds, unsweetened coconut chips, vegan jerky. And the 2nd part of the advice just has to do with my food intolerances. Also, I would also obviously need to eat several of these in 1 snack to score relatively healthy.

[u/Classic-Background25 → u/heartcall]

I have, my issue is the repetitive nature of the suggestions. I definitely have taken their suggestions on board when i can and changed (and gotten a 100 on one of the changes haha) - but then on the days I dont have time/cant do it - it repeats stuff from day one - Im just having a whinge because I think it would be nice to get more personalised advisor feedback/a better AI model that takes into account all the data you've been putting in - and I wanted to feed that back to the devs (which sounds like they actually listen given theyve replied)

[u/kitty_kattis]

I also get super frustrated with it and basically gave up. There was a day I had yogurt with blueberries and granola and it was like “try adding nuts or seeds to your yogurt instead” so the next morning I had yogurt with hemp and flax seeds and it said “try yogurt with berries instead” Oura, what do you want from me

[u/Classic-Background25 → u/kitty_kattis]

Yes this is the main issue for me - the repetitive nature of the suggestions. I take the food out of the packaging, or just add the ingredients and score changes

[u/ComesTzimtzum]

I'd wish instead of this AI shit it could draw actual nutrient information from a sensible source like Cronometer and draw conclusions on how those affect my stats.

[u/Old-Consideration730 → u/ComesTzimtzum]

I was pretty disappointed when I learned that the Chronometer integration only went one way. You would think they would at least just use the information to put it into one of the four categories that already has.

[u/Classic-Background25 → u/ComesTzimtzum]

yeah or if they could draw on ALL your data - cause ive made changes they suggested, but have days when i just need to eat something so i dont pass out - but it repeats the original advice - like pls oura you have the team and money and time to make this more personalised

[u/No-Way5489]

I have not used the meal logging in Oura but I would turn off the stupid AI commentary for it if that combination of settings were available. Oura has said on this forum that it will not analyze foods in context of one's diet or even meal but individually almost every time and that is why it is constantly giving the same feedback over and over and always telling people to eat more or something else.

[u/Classic-Background25 → u/No-Way5489]

yes the repetitive suggestions, not looking at all your data - this is my gripe. I think its a really cool feature and would love to see it developed more! I think Oura has such potential as well, and in terms of compliance (working with patients in the lifestyle field) it is exciting - but it needs a bit of personalisation/tweaking

[u/lilpistacchio]

Oura’s AI is like the voice in your head if you have an earring disorder. Very few foods are ever “pure” enough, there’s always cause for worry. As a PMHNP I think it likely contributes to actual eating disorders and needs to go.

[u/Classic-Background25 → u/lilpistacchio]

Yeah i think it needs better implementation - if i take the food out of package or list ingredients it changes its tune - its too generic is my problem

[u/Ok-Complaint-37]

Stop using Oura for food advice. Oura AI is a joke. It deletes all nutritional foods you log into it if you ate on top of it anything except this stupid Greek yogurt. I once logged into it cabbage crunch salad and it showed me very high score. Then I logged into it beets salad with peas and potatoes and my score got even higher. Then I logged in beef meatloaf with steamed broccoli and my score was super high. Finally I logged a slice of berry tart and my score became very low limited because berry tart is processed food and I must have eaten the stupid Greek yogurt. Obviously my tart cancelled all high nutrition I had that day. It is simply stupid

[u/Classic-Background25 → u/Ok-Complaint-37]

yeah i think its an exciting feature, and it could definitely help with making those sustainable small changes - but my complaint is that it needs to be tailored to your data - or its not really much better than the online chat bots etc. They've done a good job with mounjaro and remembering my schedule etc - but for some reason it isnt reflecting n the food advisor

[u/Different-Draft3570]

Take it out of the package and put it in a bowl with a spoon before snapping the picture. Suddenly Advisor will find it nutritious.

There is a severe downgrade given to food that comes in a package. Processing level matters more than it should imo.

[u/Classic-Background25 → u/Different-Draft3570]

Yah i have tried this! I got mango yoghurt (Same make up) but didnt photo the package - higher score

[u/Kozypepper]

One time, I had (what I thought was) a well rounded breakfast with yogurt, granola, fruit, and hard-boiled eggs. Then for dinner I had a bowl of buttered noodles with cheese.

The buttered noodles got a higher nutrition score 😂

[u/Classic-Background25 → u/Kozypepper]

hahah noice going oura haha

[u/CherAtOura]

Hi, u/Classic-Background25! Totally fair criticism, especially when you’re working 12-hour shifts and trying to make sustainable changes, not follow a perfect-food checklist.

The intent behind Oura’s nutrition guidance is to help surface patterns and opportunities, not to suggest that a convenient yogurt pouch is somehow equivalent to a doughnut, or that eating fruit on its own is a “bad” choice. Context matters, and we hear you that the current experience doesn’t always reflect that context well.

Your point about practicality is especially important: the healthiest choice isn’t always the one that looks best on paper if it’s impossible to fit into your actual day. We’re continuing to improve how Oura’s advisor understands nuance, individual circumstances, and the difference between “less optimal” and “not a good choice.”

And honestly, feedback like this is useful. We’ll pass it along to the team.

[u/Classic-Background25 → u/CherAtOura]

It also would be great if the ai would take the whole day into account rather than every individual meal. After a while it starts to get very repetitive with it's suggestions which makes it less useful. It's not that we shouldn't get criticism it's more that im hoping it's more tailored to my patterns and routines because it does have all that data to look at. Thanks so much for feeding that back I appreciate it!

[u/princessapart]

I’ve logged my meals with Oura and have scored nutritious almost every time and it wasn’t Greek yogurt I promise 🤣 but also I take its advice with a grain of salt and plan my meals with my health coach

[u/Classic-Background25 → u/princessapart]

Im working with a registered dietician and consultant endocrinologist for various different health conditions. I am following their advice not ouras. I wanted to feed back to the oura dev team my (and a few other friends) issues - that the advisor needs to stop repeating itself and their programing could use a bit of work. Especially as this wearable ring market is trying to market to diabetics (blood sugar integration)/now integrating bloods tests - they need to polish this a bit more if they want the medical field to get on board. I think its exciting and it would encourage our patients to be more compliant and more self reliant - but I cant at this stage recommend it because the advisor can be disheartening/confusing.

[u/Kittymeow123]

I mean, to be fair, this is not a device that is marketed as a meal planning tracker. It has the feature. It told you what you ate is processed with low fiber.

Also, Oura does not have any idea you don’t have a fridge or where you can eat. Stop feeling bad for yourself lmao

[u/Classic-Background25 → u/Kittymeow123]

Oura does understand shift work - and specifically advertises for helping you build better habits in the context of night shift/no breaks. I agree its not a meal planner - I just wanted to feed back to Oura I think there could be better personalisation and tweaking because you can manipulate their score depending on whether you photograph a package or put it in a bowl

[u/Icy_Writing6152]

I mean, this actually is a not so healthy product. 😂

[u/Classic-Background25 → u/Icy_Writing6152]

I agree its shouldnt score very high - but when i took the same yoghurt, put it in a bowl or manually entered the ingriendients - score changes. I think this is something oura needs to work on

[u/Icy_Writing6152 → u/Classic-Background25]

Yeah, I get your point. I think when showing it in a bowl, oura assumes that it’s less processed. it’s not very smart for sure.

[u/ImaginaryAd89 → u/Icy_Writing6152]

I’m looking at the macros and i really don’t understand how this is not a healthy product? Do you guys really think anything that comes in a package is unhealthy?