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Boom times in Silicon Valley call for hard work, and hard work — at least in technology land — means that coders, engineers and venture capitalists are turning to liquid meals with names like Schmoylent, Soylent, Schmilk and People Chow. The protein-packed products that come in powder form are inexpensive and quick and easy to make — just shake with water, or in the case of Schmilk, milk. While athletes and dieters have been drinking their dinner for years, Silicon Valley's workers are now increasingly chugging their meals, too, so they can more quickly get back to their computer work.
Demand for some of the powdered drinks, which typically mix nutrients like magnesium, zinc and vitamins, is so high that some engineers report being put on waiting lists of one to six months to receive their first orders. And the drinks are taking off across techie social circles. Venture capitalists have also poured money into the companies that offer the meal replacements, and investors including Alexis Ohanian, a founder of Reddit, count themselves as fans of the drinks.
[Editor's Comment: Original Submission]
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 27 2015, @03:46PM
Cravings are a good thing.
That is not really true. Cravings are part habit too. For example right now I crave eating a bag of oreos and wash it down with a 32oz cola. It is very easy to misunderstand cravings, habit, and need.
Instead I am drinking my water as I am trying to lower my sugar intake to reduce my weight (15 so far this year). What you eat is also habit.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFzDaBzBlL0 [youtube.com]
This puts it in an interesting way. Think of all the habits you have learned in your life. You have habits you do not even THINK about. Eating is one of them. To actually change your diet takes months of unconditioning and actually understanding why you eat. But do not mistake a new habit for good or bad. It may not be so. For example I could take up the habit of smoking. One that is arguably bad for me. But it would not take long to learn the habit of it. As the chemical brew that is a cigarette is designed to be habit forming.
This sludge does not sound like a good habit. It sounds like the sort of thing you use when you are trying to minimize carry weight. To ignore taste and texture is to ignore being human. But you also need to realize the big food conglomerates have thru evolution of their products had 50+ years to hone their craft of selling you processed foods. They do it with advertising (repetition), taste (tweaking salty/bitter/sweet mix), texture (how smooth or rough the package/food is), smell, sound (the way a can clicks and pops), and brand.
My point? Cravings can be easily manipulated to be turned into habits. Do not mistake them for 'what your body needs'.