Is Bournvita Good For Health? Find Out Here

You must have all consumed Bourvita at some point in your lives, and some of you may still do so.

Bournvita is a malt-based drink that first appeared in India in 1958. From that year to now, it has been a part of Indian households and has become one of the most popular drinks among people.

In fact, bournvita is the leader in the malt-based drink, with a market share of more than 35% in India.

It is frequently marketed as a health food (Tann ki shakti, Mann ki shakti), and millions of people consume it, including children.

However, have you ever wondered if bournvita is really good for your health or not?

Short answer: Bournvita is not good for your health as it is high in sugar and contains artificial flavors. In addition, it has very low nutritional profile and is not ideal drink to be consumed on a regular basis.

For more detailed overview of Bournvita, keep reading till the end of the post.

Also read: Is Pediasure Good For kids? Potential Benefits And Downsides

Ingredients in bournvita

Here is the list of key ingredients that are used in bournvita:

• Malt extract: Malt extract is a thick, dark brown, syrupy liquid produced from malted barley. It is mainly used as a flavoring agent in foods.
• Sugar: Sugar is one of the main components used in very high quantities in bournvita.
• Cocoa solids: Cocoa solids are the dry residue obtained by extracting cocoa butter from cacao beans.
• Caramel colour: Caramel colour is an artificial browning agent used in foods. It is used to give that brown color to bournvita.
• Liquid glucose: It is sugar in the form of liquid used to improve the taste and shelf life of the bournvita.
• Protein isolate: It is a dietary supplement made from protein used to provide some extra protein to bournvita.
• Maltodextrin: It is a food additive made from corn, rice, wheat or potato. It is used to thicken, stabilize and enhance the flavor of the bournvita.
• Milk solids: These are used to improve the texture, flavor, and nutritional value of bournvita.
• Emulsifiers: These are food additives that are used to keep all ingredients in bournvita stable and prevent them from separating.
• Raising agent: The most common raising agents used are baking powder or baking soda.
• Artificial flavours: These are chemicals used to imitate natural flavours or enhance the existing flavours.

Bournvita nutrition facts

Bournvita is marketed as a health drink that provides people with nutrition. However, it does not contain even a quarter of the recommended amount of nutrients daily.

Here are the nutrition facts of bournvita per 100 grams:

• Calories: 393
• Protein: 7 g
• Carbohydrates: 85.2 g
• Sugar: 37 g
• Fat: 1.8 g
• Iron: 40 mg
• Zinc: 4.5 mg
• Phosphorus: 230 mg
• Sodium:136 mg

It also contains vitamins like A, C, D, B1, B2, B3, B5, B6 and B12 but in small quantities.

Also read: Is Horlicks Good For Health? The Truth About This Malt Drink

7 Reasons why bournvita is not good for health

Loaded with sugar

The first and foremost thing that makes bournvita bad for your health is lots of sugar in it.

A single serving of bournvita contains 14 to 15 grams of sugar, which is approximately 3 to 4 teaspoons of sugar.

Bournvita recommends 2 serving daily, which gives you about 7 teaspoons of sugar, or about 28 grams of sugar. This amount of sugar is 12% more than what is recommended for women, 77% of what is recommended for men, and 14% more than what is recommended for children. The problem becomes much worse when some people add an extra spoon of sugar to their milk.

Consuming this much amount of sugar on a daily basis can have a range of negative consequences on your health, including weight gain, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease.

In addition, to enhance the flavour of bournvita, artificial sweeteners such as maltodextrin, caramel and liquid glucose are also used in it. Although artificial sweeteners pose few risks than table sugar, if consumed in excess, they can cause various health problems.

Low protein content

Bournvita claims that it will aid in developing strong muscles, which is also stated on the front of the box. However, the reality is quite different.

What do you need to build muscle? Protein, of course. We do need more other nutrients like calcium and magnesium, but protein is the most important.

A single serving of Bournvita contains only 1.4 grams of protein, which is extremely low and does not aid in muscle growth. To gain muscle mass with Bournvita, you’ll need to consume at least 15 servings per day, which is unhealthy and not recommended.

Use of artificial flavours

Artificial flavours are often used to enhance the flavours and taste of the bournvita. However, not many studies say artificial flavours are entirely bad for your health. But some evidence suggests that consuming food made using artificial flavours and colors can lead to allergic reactions, food hypersensitivity, abdominal pain, diarrhoea and vomiting.

Not enough calcium and vitamin D as claimed

Calcium and vitamin D are two of the essential nutrients for your bones.

Calcium strengthens your bones, while vitamin D helps you absorb calcium more effectively.

However, levels of both the nutrients in bournvita are shallow. A single serving of Bournvita contains only 20 mg of calcium, which is even less than 5% of the daily recommended amount. Also, the levels of vitamin D are very low.

Low nutrition levels

Bournvita is not only low in protein, calcium, or vitamin D. Pick any of the other nutrients, and you’ll find that it doesn’t even come close to meeting the daily requirements even for children.

Many people consume bournvita even though it is extremely low in nutrients. This is primarily because they dislike the taste and smell of milk, and drinks like bournvita solve this problem. However, keep in mind that it will not provide you with enough nutrients on a daily basis.

Not good for adults

Bournvita may benefit children because they are typically more active than adults. However, if consumed regularly by adults, the excess sugar, which comes with small amounts of additional value, can cause serious health problems.

However, bournvita itself recommends taking servings as a part of a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle. That means if you are not active enough, the sugar in it can lead you to gain weight and other health issues.

Absorption problem

Most people who have been drinking Bournvita for a long time may argue that it contains some nutrients and that anything is better than nothing.

Complex chemistry is at work here. Sugar has long been known to inhibit the absorption of both Vitamin D and Calcium. This means that due to the high sugar content in bournvita, even small amounts of vitamin D and calcium present in it will not be entirely absorbed by your body.

Furthermore, research has revealed that cow milk inhibits iron absorption and that its consumption is a leading cause of anaemia in infants. Even if Bournvita is fortified with Vitamin D and iron, and milk is fortified with Calcium, the sugar and milk will inhibit the absorption of these nutrients, negating their value.

That means your body is getting almost no nutrients even if you drink a glass of milk with a serving of Bournvita.

Final words

While bournvita is one of the most popular malt based drink among people. It is loaded with high amount of sugar and artificial flavors. In addition, it has very low nutritional profile and should not be consumed on a regular basis as it may lead to negative health effects in long run.

If you really want your milk to be healthy and delicious, you can add 3-4 dates to it. If you prefer, I can write a post for you on the healthiest alternatives to Bournvita.

Found this information helpful? Share it with the people and let them know why bournvita is not good for their health.

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FAQs about bournvita