Where the food data comes from
The calorie and macro figures behind healmeal come from three layered sources. The first is USDA FoodData Central, a public reference database maintained by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It covers raw ingredients, common branded foods, and standard reference items.
The second layer is a curated set of community and chain restaurant entries that USDA does not track in detail, such as a specific Pret sandwich or a Chipotle bowl with custom ingredients. Where a restaurant publishes nutrition data, we use their published values.
The third layer is an AI fallback for foods that do not appear in either source. It composes a macro profile from the closest reference ingredients and flags the entry as estimated, so you know the number is a model output and not a measured value.
How the AI photo estimate works
When you take a photo, a vision model first identifies the dish and its likely ingredients. It then estimates the portion using visual cues, including plate or bowl size, the depth of the food, and any reference objects in frame such as a fork or a hand.
The portion estimate is mapped to grams, the grams are mapped to the matched food entry, and the macros are returned. The whole process runs in under five seconds in most cases and stays on your phone after the initial classification.
Accuracy and how to adjust
For common dishes with clear shapes, such as a bowl of oatmeal, a chicken breast, a slice of pizza, or a standard sandwich, the photo estimate lands within about five percent of a hand-logged entry. For mixed plates, layered foods, and dense foods like rice, the variance is wider.
Every log is editable. Tap the portion to scale it up or down, swap the dish if the model picked the wrong one, or split a plate into separate items. Adjustments save instantly and feed back into future suggestions on similar meals.
How fresh is the data
The nutrition database is re-synced periodically. The last sync ran on 20 May 2026. Restaurant menus change over time, so when a chain updates its published nutrition we update the numbers to match on the next sync.
Who builds this
healmeal is built by Hachly Limited. For corrections or questions, email hello@hachly.com. More on the team and the product is on the about page.
Report a wrong number
Spotted a calorie or macro figure that looks off? Email hello@hachly.com with the food or menu item and we will check it against the source.
When to ask your doctor
healmeal is a tracking and estimation tool. It is not medical advice and it is not a substitute for guidance from a registered dietitian or a physician. If you have a clinical condition that depends on precise macronutrient or micronutrient targets, such as diabetes, chronic kidney disease, or an eating disorder, please use healmeal alongside the care of a qualified professional, not in place of it.