# Could someone survive on Sweetened Condensed Milk? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 20, 2004, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-someone-survive-on-sweetened-condensed-milk/230164 "2004-02-20T05:38:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Call\_me\_Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Call\_me\_Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Call_me_Frank)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2004, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-someone-survive-on-sweetened-condensed-milk/230164/1 "2004-02-20T05:38:08Z")
I was doing some baking the other day and one of the things required a portion of sweetened and condensed milk. I read the nutrition facts and I figure that if you were to consume an entire 14oz can of the stuff (which I don’t imagine would be too hard) that the can would account for: [li]1,300 calories (300 from fat[30g])[/li][li].1g of cholesterol[/li][li].4g of sodium[/li][li]230g of carbohydrates[/li][li]30g of protein[/li]as well as [li]20% of your vitamin A requirement[/li][li]100% of your calcium requirement[/li] So my question is this: As far as emergency rations go, how good would a can of this stuff be? ---
**Author:** ![Call\_me\_Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Call\_me\_Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Call_me_Frank)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2004, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-someone-survive-on-sweetened-condensed-milk/230164/2 "2004-02-20T05:40:13Z")
Blast! knew I should have previewed…last time I try and make my own bloody list…forgot the list /list tags… ---
**Author:** ![Boo\_Boo\_Foo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@Boo\_Boo\_Foo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boo_Boo_Foo)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2004, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-someone-survive-on-sweetened-condensed-milk/230164/3 "2004-02-20T06:33:19Z")
In an emergency, yes it would suffice quite well for maybe 3 weeks. After that, the lack of dietary fibre and other necessary nutrients normally found in green vegetables and meats would start to cause a problem I rather think. One assumes you’d have a decent supply of drinking water too, of course. Just as an interesting sidenote:- my understanding is that the ONLY food which can permanently sustain human life in exclusion to all else is a supply of varied raw fish, believe it or not. Don’t have a cite I’m afraid. ---
**Author:** ![scm1001](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@scm1001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scm1001)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2004, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-someone-survive-on-sweetened-condensed-milk/230164/4 "2004-02-20T11:52:31Z")
there was a program on TV a year or so ago who had a food phobia, and lived on nothing but chocolate and milk. All his teeth had rotted away, but apart from that he seemed OK. All young mammals seem to survive grow and thrive on milk so perhaps you can ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2004, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-someone-survive-on-sweetened-condensed-milk/230164/5 "2004-02-20T12:11:56Z")
Scurvey’ll get you sooner or later if you tried to live on this stuff, but as an emergency food, it’s fine. ---
**Author:** ![Call\_me\_Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Call\_me\_Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Call_me_Frank)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2004, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-someone-survive-on-sweetened-condensed-milk/230164/6 "2004-02-20T18:40:46Z")
Interesting indeed, thanks everyone! ---
**Author:** ![yBeayf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/e274bd/32.png) [@yBeayf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yBeayf)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2004, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-someone-survive-on-sweetened-condensed-milk/230164/7 "2004-02-20T23:33:22Z")
> [@](#): > > my understanding is that the ONLY food which can permanently sustain human life in exclusion to all else is a supply of varied raw fish, believe it or not. What about breastmilk? ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2004, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-someone-survive-on-sweetened-condensed-milk/230164/8 "2004-02-21T00:04:42Z")
> [@yBeayf](#): > > What about breastmilk? Good question, huh? If you were relying on it, it would sure suck to go lactose intolerant. ---
**Author:** ![Call\_me\_Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Call\_me\_Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Call_me_Frank)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2004, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-someone-survive-on-sweetened-condensed-milk/230164/9 "2004-02-21T01:39:03Z")
My breasts, such as they are, don’t and won’t produce milk, but thanks for asking, **yBeayf** , lol. Actually if you think about it, breast milk production is dependant upon the owner of the aforementioned breasts having access to a supply of food of her own. So, it strikes me as a really unlikely survival food. Aside from all the nitty-gritty logistical details, of course.