What would happen if you ate holographic food long enough it was supporting your life — then you left the holodeck?

Classic nerd thing. I woke up this morning wondering what would happen if you spent so long in the Star Trek holodeck eating holographic food that a large portion of your body was made up of holographic cells. We’re making the assumption that the holodeck could handle your body processing the holofood into holocells and from there handle where each holoatom sits in your system.

Holographic body parts were possible when Neelix has his lungs stolen off him in Voyager that one time, but they were complex things that meant he couldn’t move else the computer couldn’t keep up. If you got to that point you’d just keel over dead the second you moved, but we’re only talking individual cells. The projectors would just need to keep them moving with you, not moving and processing oxygen. Should be alright there.

But then you leave the holodeck. Oh no, a bunch of cells in your body just vanished. Pain at best, structural collapse and disintegration at worst. Nice.

Looked into it as any good nerd would and as it turns out the holodecks get past this issue with creative use of the replicator and transporter systems. If you eat food on the holodeck, you’re actually eating regular replicated food.

I’m glad someone thought of this.

Image is of Star Trek Voyager’s holodeck. In the image appears Voyager’s Captain Janeway and the Emergency Medical Hologram known as The Doctor