# Food Log Guide

A log or logbook is a record of important information and it's comprised of a series of *entries* associated with a date and time. In the same way, a food log is a series of log entries that represent the consumption of different types of foods.

It is important to understand that **an entry in the food log doesn't represent the food itself but represents an "event" of food being consumed**. As such, it must include at least the following elements: date, time, food that was consumed, and the consumed quantity.

To add a new entry in the food log, for all cases, the [createMealLog mutation](https://docs.suggestic.com/graphql/query/mutations/food-log/log-entries/meal-log-legacy/food-logs) should be used.

### Understanding meal types (mealType)

The first step to a successful implementation of food logging with the Suggestic API is understanding the different types of "loggable" objects defined under the concept of a [*`mealType`*](https://docs.suggestic.com/graphql/objects/food-logs/meal-type)

| mealType     | Description                                                                 |
| ------------ | --------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `RECIPE`     | A [recipe](https://docs.suggestic.com/graphql/objects/recipe/recipe-object) |
| `USDA_MEAL`  | A meal or food from the USDA database                                       |
| `MENU_ITEM`  | A restaurant menu item                                                      |
| `OWN_RECIPE` | A recipe or meal created by the user                                        |
| `OWN_ITEM`   | An individual food added/created by the user                                |

Since each `mealType` is fundamentally different, the logging of each of these items will require a different set of parameters.

### Logging Recipes

To log a RECIPE you should use the [createMealLog mutation](https://docs.suggestic.com/graphql/query/mutations/food-log/food-logs), making sure you use the correct mealType. In this case, the `mealType`  would be RECIPE. 

Please note that you'll be using the `quantity` and `customServingEquivalent` fields and **not** the `serving` field.

**Example**

{% tabs %}
{% tab title="Mutation" %}

```graphql
mutation {
    createMealLog(
        mealType: RECIPE,
        mealTime: DINNER,
        mealDatabaseId: "a281aa17-e746-4780-b69b-b4c3597bb783",
        customServingEquivalent: 122.53701305389404,
        date: "2020-04-02",
        quantity: 1,
        time: "20:00"
    ) {
        success
        databaseId
    }
}
```

{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Result" %}

```graphql
{
  "data": {
    "createMealLog": {
      "success": true,
      "databaseId": "d2c233b6bca411eba1f9a6b553e671fd"
    }
  }
}
```

{% endtab %}
{% endtabs %}

### Logging USDA Items

To log a USDA\_MEAL you should use the [createMealLog mutation](https://docs.suggestic.com/graphql/query/mutations/food-log/food-logs), making sure you use the correct mealType. 

Please note that you'll be using the `serving` field, **not** the `customServingEquivalent` field.  

### Logging Menu Items

To log a MENU\_ITEM you should use the [createMealLog mutation](https://docs.suggestic.com/graphql/query/mutations/food-log/food-logs), making sure you use the correct mealType. 

### Logging "Own Recipes"

To log an OWN\_RECIPE you should use the [createMealLog mutation](https://docs.suggestic.com/graphql/query/mutations/food-log/food-logs), making sure you use the correct mealType. 

### Logging "Own Items"

To log an OWN\_ITEM you should use the [createMealLog mutation](https://docs.suggestic.com/graphql/query/mutations/food-log/food-logs), making sure you use the correct mealType.