When not to diet

Do not use this app to lose weight if you are under 18. Do not use it to diet if you are pregnant, trying to become pregnant, or breastfeeding. Those are times for a clinician, not a calorie floor written for a general adult.

Do not run a deficit if you have or have had anorexia, bulimia, binge eating, or any other eating disorder, or if logging meals makes you hide food, fear a meal, or punish yourself after eating. A food diary is the wrong tool in that case. Stop using the target and get support.

Stop the deficit and speak to a doctor if you feel faint, have chest pain, notice hair falling out, lose a period, or feel cold all the time. Unexplained weight loss, when you are not trying, is a medical question, not a head start.

Illness, a new medicine, or a history of heart, kidney, or metabolic disease can change what a safe intake is. Bring the diary if it helps the appointment. Do not treat the app’s number as clearance to continue.

If you might be in immediate danger, contact local emergency services. In the UK that is 999. In the US that is 911.

A useful log takes a few minutes. It is a problem when you delay eating until you have calculated it, skip meals with other people, or feel you cannot stop checking the remaining calories. That is the moment to close the deficit, eat regular meals, and talk to someone who treats eating disorders.

CaloriTrack does not diagnose anything and it does not treat anything. Clearing the site data in your browser deletes the diary if keeping the history is part of the problem.

In the UK, Beat supports anyone affected by an eating disorder. Helplines differ by nation and are listed on Beat’s helpline page. The England line is 0808 801 0677.

In the United States, the National Eating Disorders Association lists current help options at nationaleatingdisorders.org/get-help. Hours and contact methods change, so use that page rather than an old number you remember.