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When I lost the ability to eat solid food, I tried Soylent — now I'm a believer

melia robinson soylent
Courtesy of Melia Robinson

I stumbled into a love affair with Soylent, quite literally. Earlier this year, I fell and broke my jaw in three places. My road to recovery included a gruesome surgery to realign my mouth and wire my jaw shut, à la Kanye West's "Through the Wire".

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And like Yeezus, who famously rapped "I drink a Boost for breakfast, an Ensure for dessert" in 2002 just weeks after surviving a near fatal car accident and sustaining three mandibular fractures, I had few options for sustenance.

At the suggestion of my boyfriend, who works in the tech industry, I tried Silicon Valley's favorite meal-replacement drink, Soylent 2.0. Seven weeks later, I'm still tossing back four bottles a day with no intent on stopping. Soylent is my new go-to food.

It was hardly love at first sip. I remember the first time I drank Soylent months ago, when a coworker prepared it using the original powdered mixture. It tasted like a watered down paste made from chalk dust.

When the ready-to-drink Soylent 2.0 bottles were introduced last August, I noticed a substantial improvement. My boyfriend likens the taste to milk leftover from eating a bowl of Cheerios. There's no mixing required, so each bottle tastes as consistently "okay" as the last.

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Melia Robinson/Tech Insider

I interviewed Soylent's CEO and cofounder Rob Rhinehart last summer after the product launch. When I asked about formula improvements to affect taste, he sidestepped.

"We're designing for function," Rhinehart told me. "A lot of meals seem to have this trade-off. You can have something healthy, but it's going to be costly or inconvenient. You can have something quick and easy, but it's not going to be healthy. We can use science and engineering to make something efficient, so that you don't have to choose."

Once my jaw was wired shut, I didn't have much choice. The metal in my mouth left barely enough room for a straw. I decided to make Soylent my primary food source over Kanye's favorite protein shakes, Boost and Ensure, because it contained about twice the protein and half the sugar. It's made from soy protein isolate, lab-made algae oil, and a host of ingredients I can't pronounce, and provides 400 calories per serving.

I drank up to six bottles a day for the first month of my recovery, and supplemented my diet with blended foods, juice, and milkshakes.

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Luckily, my roommate carried up the 150-container shipment of Soylent. Melia Robinson/Tech Insider

However, "real food" quickly started to annoy me. Blended lasagna, chili, frittata, and saag paneer brought variety to my diet, but they also reminded me what I was missing out on. Disassembling my blender and washing it by hand six times a day became a chore.

An icy Soylent from the fridge became an island unto itself. It required no preparation or clean up. It was portable. Soylent traveled with me on crowded trains, to Florida for an ill-timed family vacation, to conventions, and to a wedding. The taste grew on me, as well.

Plus, the cost of three to four week's worth of Soylent closely rivaled how much I typically spend on groceries. I shelled out $238 on 84 bottles of Soylent to cushion my apartment's existing supply. At about $2.80 per meal, Soylent costs less than most cups of coffee.

When I interviewed Rhinehart, I never imagined myself giving up food for a bland protein drink. Now that I can eat soft foods again, I drink it voluntarily. I ditched yogurt for Soylent on the commute into work, so I don't have to wake up earlier to eat breakfast. When I don't have time to step away from my desk for lunch, I grab a Soylent.

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It sustains me for hours at a time, and it makes "real food" all the more satisfying when I take the time to prepare it.

Soylent is my fail-safe option. I only wish Kanye knew the same convenience.

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