# The best food by itself **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 29, 2006, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-food-by-itself/374567 "2006-09-29T01:59:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![overeasy4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/b9bd4f/32.png) [@overeasy4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/overeasy4)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2006, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-food-by-itself/374567/1 "2006-09-29T01:59:43Z")
I’m not sure this has a factual answer, so here we are in IMHO. What is the best food for you? By this I mean, what would keep you healthiest the longest if you were stranded with nothing but it to eat? And I am assuming you have water to drink. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2006, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-food-by-itself/374567/2 "2006-09-29T05:42:01Z")
I’ll go with Sushi, only because my mental state would keep me ignorant of my deteriorating health. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2006, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-food-by-itself/374567/3 "2006-09-29T05:48:58Z")
We have had this question asked in GQ a number of times, and we never came to consensus. The thing is, there is no food that can come close to providing all the nutrients the human body needs. Things like certain beans and brown rice come close (lots of protein and good carbs, some vitamins and minerals,) but they have absolutely no vitamin C, which is very much needed. Bananas are also good, they have vitamin C, but low protein. What it comes down to is there is no naturally occuring food that one can eat and live forever on. And due to the ethicallity of it, no studies have been done to see what food can make someone live the longest if they were to only eat that. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2006, 9:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-food-by-itself/374567/4 "2006-09-29T09:58:34Z")
[QUOTE=bouv] We have had this question asked in GQ a number of times, and we never came to consensus. The thing is, there is no food that can come close to providing all the nutrients the human body needs. Things like certain beans and brown rice come close (lots of protein and good carbs, some vitamins and minerals,) but they have absolutely no vitamin C, which is very much needed. Bananas are also good, they have vitamin C, but low protein. What it comes down to is there is no naturally occuring food that one can eat and live forever on. And due to the ethicallity of it, no studies have been done to see what food can make someone live the longest if they were to only eat that. [/QUOTE] Purina Bachelor Kibble? I have a book, Little Heroes where ‘people kibble’ is free, you just go to a public outlet and get it. I know there have been a number of threads about people kibble, and somewhere is a link to some whackjob who makes up a special ‘salad’ that he eats all week. [I say whackjob because he is past thin to gaunt, he may be to concentration camp thinness now] ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2006, 10:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-food-by-itself/374567/5 "2006-09-29T10:01:26Z")
Didn’t we once decide that humans would be the best “one food for the rest of your life”? ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2006, 11:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-food-by-itself/374567/6 "2006-09-29T11:29:03Z")
As always, I’m going to go with pizza. Bread, milk, fruit, meat, vegetables. Every foodgroup (assuming you order all the topings) and it tastes good too. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2006, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-food-by-itself/374567/7 "2006-09-29T11:32:55Z")
Human milk. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2006, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-food-by-itself/374567/8 "2006-09-29T13:18:26Z")
[QUOTE=aruvqan] I know there have been a number of threads about people kibble, and somewhere is a link to some whackjob who makes up a special ‘salad’ that he eats all week. [I say whackjob because he is past thin to gaunt, he may be to concentration camp thinness now] [/QUOTE] My father’s dinner, when he is sticking to his plan, is stewed tomatoes, sauerkraut and tuna. Something about heart and prostate health. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2006, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-food-by-itself/374567/9 "2006-09-29T13:30:07Z")
Pumpkin pie. ---
**Author:** ![davenportavenger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5f8ce5/32.png) [@davenportavenger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davenportavenger)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2006, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-food-by-itself/374567/10 "2006-09-29T14:13:17Z")
What about pet food? What pet has the closest body and metabolism type to a human? I’d think hamster food would be the best, since even though hamsters are herbivores their food must contain some protein. Dog and cat food would probably be too heavy on protein and not enough on other types of nutrients. Any vet here to weigh in on this idea? ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2006, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-food-by-itself/374567/11 "2006-09-29T14:20:42Z")
In the People Kibble thread, Purina Primate Chow is brought up as a possible solution. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2006, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-food-by-itself/374567/12 "2006-09-29T14:21:10Z")
I have heard you can survive for a significant amount of time on young coconuts alone - eat the flesh, drink the milk. Particularly good for desert islands with no water source. Not sure how accurate that is. ---
**Author:** ![SnakesCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4af34b/32.png) [@SnakesCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnakesCatLady)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2006, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-food-by-itself/374567/13 "2006-09-29T14:25:09Z")
[QUOTE=jjimm] I have heard you can survive for a significant amount of time on young coconuts alone - eat the flesh, drink the milk. Particularly good for desert islands with no water source. Not sure how accurate that is. [/QUOTE] That was going to be my answer! ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2006, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-food-by-itself/374567/14 "2006-09-29T16:39:58Z")
Raw red meat. Raw meat still has Vit C. You better get some with fat, as there won,t be much fiber though. There are some grains that come close. I am assuming the OP means “single food” as opposed to a “food bar” type product. I imagine one could survive on Ensure for quite some time.