Are digestive biscuits actually good for the gut? - Food Files

Sep 27, 2023

Take two every morning and evening.

Since 1892, McVitie’s – the creators of the world’s most popular digestive biscuit – have been cranking out the same biccies with the same secret recipe, with vague promises of health and improved, er, regularity.

According to the McVitie’s digestive biscuit package, the ingredients are wheat, palm oil, sugar, wholemeal wheat flour, partially inverted sugar syrup, sodium bicarbonate, salt, and malic acid. Let’s break that down into simple terms.

A few ingredients in the list stand out because they’re either buzz words, or ones we don’t recognise. The first and most obvious being palm oil – palm oil is high in saturated fat, which boosts “bad” LDL cholesterol and triglycerides, both of which are risk factors for heart disease. The production of palm oil has also gained notoriety because of the significant negative impact the industry has in relation to deforestation.

We all know what sugar syrup is but what the heck is partially inverted sugar syrup? In the simplest terms, partially inverted sugar syrup is typically sucrose – white table sugar – that has been transformed into a sweeter sugar product with different functional properties, like flavour as well as shelf stability.

McVitie's Digestives source: McVitie's

The last science-sounding ingredient, malic acid, might sound sinister but in actuality, this is a naturally occurring acid that can be found in fruit, some vegetables, and wine. It adds a tart note, and also extends the life of a product.

As far as actual digestive aids go, there are two key ingredients that could, possibly, maybe be helpful: sodium bicarbonate and wholemeal wheat flour. Sodium bicarb is a known antacid, though exact doses for efficacy are unknown, and the mystery-shrouded recipe of digestive biscuits make this one a bit of a stretch.

Wholemeal wheat flour is pretty much the only ‘healthy’ ingredient listed, however, it appears further down the list than refined wheat flour. The biscuits are also loaded with salt. Four digestive biscuits contain the same amount of sodium as a packet of potato chips.

It’s not all doom and gloom though. Sure, the biscuits are nutritionally void and contain a load of salt and sugar, but they also contain trace amounts of fibre which is more than most biscuits on the shelves.

At just 71 calories (if you’re into that sort of thing) digestive biscuits are far from the worst sweet treat on the market, but as with anything, it pays to use your noggin. Common sense tells us that scoffing a packet of any kind of biscuit probably isn’t the healthiest choice. But if we’re weighing up our mid-afternoon options, you can probably give yourself a little pat on the back if you resist the chocolate block and dunk a digestive instead. And if you’re really looking for a digestive aid – try fruit.