# If you could gain the nutrition of an entire meal in a single pill, would ya? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 17, 2002, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273 "2002-12-17T06:16:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/21 "2002-12-17T14:32:48Z")
How about if you could take a pill that would give you the equivalent of eight hours of restful sleep in five minutes? How about if you could take a pill that would give you a satisfying orgasm without having any sweaty intimate contact with another human being? Damn, if we could just clear all these biological imperatives out of our lives, THINK how much time we could free up for USEFUL PRODUCTIVE WORK! ---
**Author:** ![Legomancer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/779978/32.png) [@Legomancer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Legomancer)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/22 "2002-12-17T14:33:35Z")
Most of the time, I’d have me a pill. I don’t really enjoy eating that much, and I certainly don’t enjoy cooking and washing dishes. ---
**Author:** ![Tony\_Montana](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/278dde/32.png) [@Tony\_Montana](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tony_Montana)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/23 "2002-12-17T14:48:38Z")
I’d be too afraid it’d be made of soylent green… ---
**Author:** ![Coil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Coil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coil)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/24 "2002-12-17T15:02:32Z")
Sure, I would take them , but only quite sledom. Eating (and preparing food) can be quite enjoyable activities that I wouldn´t want to miss. ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/25 "2002-12-17T15:04:49Z")
Oh, hell no. Food is too much fun. ---
**Author:** ![Legomancer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/779978/32.png) [@Legomancer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Legomancer)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/26 "2002-12-17T15:09:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ukulele Ike \* > \*\*How about if you could take a pill that would give you the equivalent of eight hours of restful sleep in five minutes? > > How about if you could take a pill that would give you a satisfying orgasm without having any sweaty intimate contact with another human being? > > Damn, if we could just clear all these biological imperatives out of our lives, THINK how much time we could free up for USEFUL PRODUCTIVE WORK! \*\* Not everyone gets a big stiffy out of eating a meal. I don’t think the OP ever mentioned people being forced to eat, simply being given an option not to if they don’t want to. Chill out a bit. And I’d probably go for the sleep pill too, every now and then. But who said anything about using the extra time to work? That’s just more goof-off time for me! ---
**Author:** ![Raymond\_Luxury\_Yacht](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raymond_luxury_yacht/32/4099_2.png) [@Raymond\_Luxury\_Yacht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raymond_Luxury_Yacht)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/27 "2002-12-17T15:39:52Z")
“It happens every time. They all become blueberries…” ---
**Author:** ![bluecanary](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bluecanary/32/3614_2.png) [@bluecanary](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bluecanary)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/28 "2002-12-17T15:45:02Z")
Yeah I think it’d be a great idea. It’d have to taste better than those Ensure+ drinks though–they’re yuk. ---
**Author:** ![bluecanary](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bluecanary/32/3614_2.png) [@bluecanary](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bluecanary)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/29 "2002-12-17T16:10:23Z")
OK, I said that in the other thread as well. It is a great idea though, and I can’t see why it hasn’t come about already, especially in Silicon Valley. (Remember in _MicroSerfs_ when one of the computer guys stops coming out so they have to push cheese slices under his door) ---
**Author:** ![Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19adc/32.png) [@Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/30 "2002-12-17T17:31:05Z")
NEVER! In fact, I’d go to stores where they sell said pills and laugh at those trying to buy 'em. And probably set up sabotage schemes to make the company go bankrupt. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/31 "2002-12-17T17:39:28Z")
I could probably go for the pill for a couple of meals a day. As long as I had the satisfying feel of a meal, I’d be good to go. I live alone, and don’t often make fancy meals for myself. Is a frozen pizza really so wonderful that I can’t bear to not have the pleasure? Sure, the burger I had for lunch today was nice, but it’s not some sort of wonder-meal. Perhaps the cooking effort I currently put in could be directed towards making yummy, but not nutritional, desserts for _after_ my pill. Instead of cooking for sustenance, I’d be cooking for pleasure, might not be a bad tradeoff. ---
**Author:** ![Legomancer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/779978/32.png) [@Legomancer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Legomancer)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/32 "2002-12-17T17:40:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Barbarian \* > \*\*NEVER! In fact, I’d go to stores where they sell said pills and laugh at those trying to buy 'em. And probably set up sabotage schemes to make the company go bankrupt. \*\* Er…why? ---
**Author:** ![neutron\_star](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@neutron\_star](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neutron_star)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/33 "2002-12-17T18:34:35Z")
I’d take the food pill _and_ the sleep pill almost all of the time. I’d also take the orgasm pill if I was trying to get some work done, and kept getting distracted by dirty thoughts. Also, in the pills-that-do-everything-but-wipe-your-ass category, I read last year (or it might have been in late 2000) in _Discover_ magazine that scientists fully expect to have a memory pill completed by 2005. Supposedly you would take the pill, and absolutely everything you read or experienced for the next eight hours would be permanently stuck in your long-term memory. The article pointed out that it would be great for studying or learning a foreign language, but potentially annoying to have, say, the entire list of ingredients in Rice Krispies floating around in your head for 20 years. ---
**Author:** ![Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19adc/32.png) [@Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/34 "2002-12-17T18:42:23Z")
- > [@](#): > > originally posted by Legomancer\* > Er…why? Because I’m evil. MUHAHAHAAH! ---
**Author:** ![Katisha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bcef8e/32.png) [@Katisha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Katisha)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/35 "2002-12-17T19:25:45Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ukulele Ike \* > \*\*How about if you could take a pill that would give you the equivalent of eight hours of restful sleep in five minutes? > \*\* I’m a grad student. I am _so_ there. ---
**Author:** ![mallen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9c0ed/32.png) [@mallen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mallen)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/36 "2002-12-17T20:02:11Z")
Not a chance. Food is too wonderful to pass on(mmmm steak), I want to be full from food, not a pill. Are we really that busy in our lives we have to resort to pills for everything? ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/37 "2002-12-17T21:11:53Z")
Exactly how large would this pill be? ---
**Author:** ![stargazer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb8c5e/32.png) [@stargazer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stargazer)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/38 "2002-12-17T23:04:23Z")
I would like a pill that would give me a day’s worth of nutrients, calories, etc., and then negate any extra calories I chose to eat during the day. That way, I could eat as much as I wanted of stuff that isn’t necessarily good for me, and still get the things my body needs to function. Best of both worlds, I say. ---
**Author:** ![Neidhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Neidhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neidhart)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/39 "2002-12-18T01:49:20Z")
I could go for that, if I’m spending the day at the library and the weather is too cold or nasty to go outdoors to have lunch. Those orgasm pills, though - I think they’re a great idea! I want a lifetime supply! ---
**Author:** ![Xavier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/2bfe46/32.png) [@Xavier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xavier)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273/40 "2002-12-18T01:56:04Z")
Yeas. Double Yeas. So long as I could eat everything else. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-gain-the-nutrition-of-an-entire-meal-in-a-single-pill-would-ya/143273.md?page=3)