This is one of those items when you need it you need it. Saved for an emergency

I’ve just started training again after recovering from an injury so I’m on a higher protein-to-carb ratio for 6 weeks. I’ve had a butterscotch tablet at 2,3, and 4 in the afternoon 3 days this week and they kept my mind off snacking, (but I snack for flavor, not because I don’t feel full). They have the consistency of butter mints to me. Somewhat. A little harder. Or really, really dense Astronaut Ice Cream. At the end of those days when I looked at my nutrients, I still had carb room for bread and popcorn to hit my fiber goal without going over on calories. Excellent!

You couldn’t and SHOULDN’T use these as a permanent meal substitute or a crash diet plan. They’re vitamins with some carbs, protein and fat to keep you from becoming dangerously malnourished in a pinch (and keep you from going too crazy). They have no potassium for your heart and a day’s supply has only 30g carbs, which is 100 less than an adult needs to keep from burning muscle to fuel your brain. (An adult brain needs about 130g worth of carbs daily to turn into fresh glucose quickly enough to function, otherwise your body will start digesting itself to use amino acids for gluoconeogenesis and you won’t be able to think straight while you’re waiting.) They’re emergency supplements, not Soylent-in-a-tablet.

I wasn’t planning on eating them every day this way, but it’s nice to know they’re there to keep my stats somewhat balanced if I go someplace where cake is being served. I’ll probably stick a pack in my husband’s kayaking gear since they’re light, take up little space, and aren’t prone to damage. My mother also wants to try some for snacking reasons, so I’ll need to get more for stocking stuffers.

The main advantage to getting these for a DIY emergency kit is you can put a tub in your basement and forget about it for forty years. You’re going to want to add something like meal bars or a trail mix featuring dried apricots or banana chips and rotate them out before they expire if you want a full range of nutrients. The nice thing is they’ll give you something to look forward to every hour when you’re under emergency stress, but if that’s not an issue for you, you could easily use a bottle of multivitamins. instead.

Not for everyday use except for emergencies.

I was under the impression that each tablet had 240 calories and then read closer and there are only 240 calories in 12 tabs..less than 500 calories per package…..I get more from a single Clif bar.

Packaging is bulky. I want to keep it in its original packaging and breaking it down into a hiking pack is a pain.

I was also under the impression that they were engineered to not induce thirst. I think that quality may be simply because there is not enough here to justify a glass of water. They may be good bait for something a little tastier. Will have to test that hypothesis.