Preparedness website advising against MRE's

kidsluvmres · Post by **kidsluvmres** » Thu May 15, 2008 10:12 pm

I found this on www.survivalacres.com. They sell freeze dried food and dehyrdated food. This is what they have to say about MRE's:

MRE's eaten over a period of time will make you quite sick. They high in fats and low in fiber and have "something" in them to keep your from having regular bowl movements. Or it's just their low fibre content. Their high calorie content means that you can survive on just one per day, although you'd definitely not feel full all day.

One the really serious side effects of MRE's is that they will also "stop you up" rather badly. You will have a hard time going to the bathroom. In fact, it might be a bit serious and extremely unpleasant. This is a very widespread and common compaint about MRE's.

Post by **kman** » Thu May 15, 2008 10:28 pm

My first reaction is, "That's just plain ignorant".

My second reaction is, "Right...that's why the military uses MREs...because MREs make the soldiers sick 'over a period of time'." (sarcarsm intended).

Look, they're a vendor and they sell emergency preparedness supplies. But they don't sell MREs. So it's in their best interested to make up FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) against MREs even when it's blatently not true.

SpikNik · Post by **SpikNik** » Fri May 16, 2008 3:20 am

The only argument I can think of in favour of what they're saying is that MREs and other retort rations can have a lower water content than the equivalent home cooked food, so yes, if you do want a good balanced diet and to not get "blocked up" while eating MREs for extended periods, a reasonable water supply is needed. However, you would need that water anyway, and you'd need a lot more if you're going to be rehydrating their foods, so I'd say their argument is null and void marketing.

SaTrinxa · Post by **SaTrinxa** » Fri May 16, 2008 7:51 am

I know in Britain that the MOD recommend a maximum of 2 weeks on the 24 Hour ration packs. I keep ration meals etc as part of my 'preps' but at the end of the day they are an expensive way of giving yourself a long-term food source.

jfko6 · Post by **jfko6** » Fri May 16, 2008 9:09 am

I second the motion that water is more important. Water is more important than an electrolyte replacement that may be included in an MRE.

I can tell you from experience that constipation can be a problem.

However, constipation is a result of dehydration or not enough water.
It would be wise to increase your intake of water. Increasing your water intake will help your body process all the fats, carbs, nutrients etc... especially if you like to add extra salt. Because of the high calorie count in the MRE water is essential.

Treesuit · Post by **Treesuit** » Sat May 17, 2008 1:43 am

Okay guys,

I read the article on the website and at first I thought that whomever wrote this must be doing some kind of political spin or really had a bad experience with MRE's. Unfortunately I think it's some kind of marketing ploy to maybe convince people not to buy them and buy up more freeze dried food. That's not to say some people out there may or may not have had MRE's and after reading that crap are probabaly not going to buy them at all. So why the negative ploy?

Also the article mentions that the retort pouches contain aluminum in them and that can lead to Altimerzer’s disease? I find that hard to believe so if somebody could either prove or disprove that acusation please post it here. I've heard that same story in the past about the foil pouches and the link. Unfortunately I think that's another conjured up story to get people not to eat the MRE's.

The only thing I could agree with is the sodium content in the meals. From what I have heard from several medics/corpsman is that there is enough sodium in the main meals to keep you from getting muscle cramps and other common types of heat injuries, but that's it.

In the meantime I just keep on buying and enjoying my MRE's,

Post by **kman** » Sat May 17, 2008 7:58 am

As for the aluminum part, from what I recall (without doing any googling), the MREs pouches consist of a layer of mylar, the foil (aluminum?), then mylar. So while yes, the pouch probably contains aluminum, it's sandwiched between two layers of mylar so should affter the food at all.

For me, the whole gist of the article had the ring of what someone heard about MREs back in the early 1990s sprinkled in with a good bit of spin to try to scare people off of MREs and onto their freeze dried products.

Post by **MCIera** » Sat May 17, 2008 10:45 pm

I think your description of the site pretty much answers the question as to why they advise against MREs. While what they say may indeed have some truth to it, I think there may be a monetary motivation for their point of view.

kidsluvmres wrote:I found this on www.survivalacres.com. They sell freeze dried food and dehyrdated food. This is what they have to say about MRE's:

SoFloAuthor · Post by **SoFloAuthor** » Mon May 19, 2008 7:37 pm

WOW! I can't believe I read that.....when we did my preparedness guide we tested much of the food on the market....ourselves! Our conclusion was shelf stable foods (MREs, ready to eat meals etc) when combined with canned veggies gave the best "closest to home cooking" experience one could get in a "bad situation".....post hurricane etc

WATER is going to be an issue after any disaster....and freeze dried is MY PERSONAL least favorite way to go.....just my .02

kidsluvmres · Post by **kidsluvmres** » Mon May 19, 2008 8:44 pm

Hi SoFlo,

I agree regarding the taste of MRE's vs. freeze dried. I much prefer the MRE and so does my 8 and 11 year old daughters. I have been thinking about the Mountain House #10 cans for long-term storage, however. Right now I have about 8 cases of MRE's for any immediate and short term needs. I've been meaning to buy your book so I guess I should do that now to see what you have to report about emergency food.

Preparedness website advising against MRE's

Preparedness website advising against MRE's

Water

Re: Preparedness website advising against MRE's