Britannia Nutrichoice Digestive Biscuits Review

I wasn't planning to write about this brand of digestive biscuits, given that I have already reviewed a few other brands (McVities, Parle Nutricrunch etc). But then I noticed a popular food blogger with a million followers, promoting Britannia Nutrichoice digestive biscuits as "healthy, high fibre, packed with whole wheat, nutritious etc". How irresponsible! The best part is that she adds honey in making a chocolate sauce and says that natural sweeteners are the best whereas the store bought chocolate sauce has added sugar. And then she proceeds to add 2 packs of Nutrichoice digestive biscuits to make a chocolate cake. What about the sugar and liquid glucose present in those biscuits, madam? 

I ran a poll on Instagram a couple of days back and asked my followers to pick the product review they would be interested to read next on my blog. Guess what the majority picked - Britannia Nutrichoice Digestive biscuits, of course!

The brand focuses on "high fibre" as its core promise. But let's look at the ingredients:

Refined wheat flour,

Whole wheat flour (20%),

Edible vegetable oil (palm),

Sugar,

Wheat bran (4.7%),

Liquid Glucose,

Milk Solids,

Maltodextrin,

Raising agents [503(ii), 500(ii)],

Iodised salt,

Emulsifiers (322, 471, 472e),

Malt extract,

Dough conditioner (223)

Contains Added flavours (Nature Identical and artificial flavoring substances (vanilla))

1. Maida, palm oil and sugar feature in the top 4 ingredients. Though whole wheat flour is present, it is only 20%.
2. 100 gms of these biscuits contain 14.5 gm of sugar (around 3.5 tsp of sugar) and 21 gm of unhealthy fats (around 5 tsp of fats)
3. The source of fibre is added wheat bran but the fibre is not substantial enough to be called as "high fibre" biscuits. 100 gms of these biscuits (around 9 biscuits) contain ONLY 6 gm of dietary fibre.There are plenty of natural sources of fibre - 1 medium sized guava contain 5gm of dietary fibre, 50 gm of roasted channa contain 8gm of dietary fibre. Why eat such junk to get our daily dose of fibre?
4. Though sugar is less as compared to other biscuits like Oreo/Parle-G, we need to check how much salt is added to balance the taste. Iodised salt is listed but the sodium levels are not mentioned in the nutrition facts table.
5. Raising agents - 503(ii) => Ammonium hydrogen carbonate, 500(ii) => sodium hydrogen carbonate or which we commonly call, baking soda. I'm sure some of you might have heard this advice from your mom/grandmom in your household many years back - "Don't eat bajji/bonda in restaurants. They add soda and it will upset your tummy." We were earlier concerned about the pinch of soda used in bajji/bonda that we used to order occasionally from a restaurant. But now, most of the bakery products and packaged foods (bread, bun, cookies, biscuits) contain baking soda and we eat them on a DAILY BASIS.
6. Emulsifiers used are 322 (lecithin), 471 (mono and diglycerides of fatty acids - glycerol monostearate, glycerol distearate), 472e (Diacetyltartaric and fatty acid esters of glycerol). All three of them are derived mainly from soya beans (as the pack shows vegetarian symbol). So there is a high chance that the raw material used could be genetically modified.

From my personal experience, what I have observed is that the digestive biscuits (irrespective of the brand) are quite addictive. They are being marketed as "healthy", "diabetic friendly", "wholewheat", "high fibre" etc but if we read the ingredients and nutrition facts, they are equally junk as compared to other biscuits in the market. 

P.S. As I'm typing this post sitting at my in-law's place in Chennai, my daughter who was next to me noticed that I'm writing about this brand. She slowly whispered in my ears, "Paatti/Thaatha have these biscuits. I saw this pack in their biscuit box. Why don't you give your presentation to them?".  I thought to myself, "Yeah, right! They are angry with me because I don't give you Horlicks, Complan, Britannia cake, cheese slices and what not. If people don't want to change their beliefs, there's no point in trying to change them."

The moral dilemma

Whenever something bothers me, I would like to explore that feeling further to see why I'm affected by it. I usually do this exploration through the process of journaling. If it is something personal, involving family or friends, I quickly jot down everything that is troubling me on top of my mind in a "note" in Evernote and delete that note right away. Whether it gives me an answer or not, this process definitely clears my mind.

If it is something that can be shared, it turns out as a post in my blog (where else) tagged under "Ramblings". So here's one issue that is bothering me a bit this evening. Read it at your own peril, share your thoughts/perspectives but without any snide remarks or harsh criticism, please.

I was at a bookstore this evening, perusing through books I want to read. As I was contemplating what books to buy, I couldn't help but check Amazon app for their respective prices. Most of the books in my wishlist are above Rs.500 MRP and the prices shown in Amazon were nearly Rs.150-200 less than what I would end up paying if I buy the same books from the bookstore. 

After spending around 30 minutes, I picked up a couple of books for my daughter, trying to comfort myself that I have still given some business to the physical book store. But I felt quite bad that I didn't buy any book from my wishlist.

1. The price difference was something that I couldn't let go of. Rs.150-200 is still a worthy amount to me. It wasn't about Amazon but more about my price sensitivity.
2. If price is such an important factor to me, then I would end up buying all my books ONLY from Amazon/Flipkart but not from a physical bookstore. And if everyone does the same, the small bookstores would eventually shut down. I so don't want that to happen. There are very few places in a city that I would like to spend my evenings in and one of them is certainly a bookstore.
    

Has anyone faced such a moral dilemma? How do you address such issues? Any word of advice/change of perspective you could offer?
Yes, there are regulations that are aimed at protecting small players but what can I as a price-sensitive individual do to maximize value but at the same time not end up trapped to a monopolistic player? 

As I was discussing this uncomfortable feeling with my husband, he brought out another interesting point - the time-value of reading a book. If I'm interested in a particular book, I should just pick it up then and there and start reading the same day. I'll be able to apply a few ideas from the book earlier than wait for the right time (read: SALE) to buy it from Amazon. I might lose interest in that book or the ideas in that book would no longer be relevant to me. It made a lot of sense but given my wish list is long, it is not easy for me to narrow down on one particular book ;-)

The solution that my mind is giving me after jotting down this post is that I should consider the additional Rs.150-200 as an "experience" cost that I'm paying the bookstore AND not for the value of the book per se. Hmm, maybe?

Book Review: The Wellness Sense by Om Swami

 

I usually go by recommendations when picking books to read but this time, it was different. I randomly picked up this book from the Kindle store and am so glad I did. 

Om Swami's The Wellness Sense gives a good overview on the basics of Ayurveda, living in tune with mother nature, the role of food in one's health and most importantly, role of our mental thoughts and emotions in modern-day ailments.

The book starts off with the basic premise:

"The health of an individual is not just the state of his physical body but an aggregate of the body, senses, mind and soul. Your immune system is directly impacted by your state of mind. The more positive and happy you are, the stronger your immunity."

The author stresses the importance of mental and emotional health throughout the book.

"How you respond to what life throws at you affects your health in the most significant manner. The way you look at anything and the manner in which you accept or reject are the two most important - if not the only - factors that determine your overall well-being."

On absorption of food and its close relationship with our mental health, I loved this particular passage

"Your physical health is almost entirely dependent on how your body accepts and processes food, which in turn is affected by your mental and emotional state. The body is not just a mechanical machine, for if it were, all stomachs would process food exactly the same way."

The first 3 chapters are similar to that of any Ayurveda focused book - where the author explains about five elements, seven dhatus, our constitution/three doshas and the importance of balance. These might be a good revision if you have already read a few Ayurveda books. 

What definitely needs to be stressed upon in today's age where a universal diet with fixed and calculated macro-nutrients is prescribed to everyone is this absolutely crucial point:

"In Ayurveda, nothing is absolute. The utility, value and effect of anything is relative. Hence the efficacy of its healing is dependent on the receiver, the time and the environment. Foods that may be good for you could be catastrophic for another person."

"Mental and physical exertion directly impact your energy flow. Further, other people's energy and the external environment can also impact your energy flow."

There were many takeaways for me, starting from Chapter 6.

"The energy of the food affects our energy. It has a significant influence on our physical, emotional and mental well-being."

The classification of foods into sattvic, rajasic and tamasic categories and their respective characteristics, impact on our body and mind were quite insightful. The chapter on eating sense - the art of choosing what, when, how and how much you put in your stomach is something that we all need to be more mindful about. It's not ONLY about WHAT foods to eat.

"A good sense of eating has five aspects, namely mindfulness, water, quantity, gratitude and time."

Apart from food, the book stresses a lot about negative emotions which according to the author "are unwholesome food for the mind." Mental detoxification techniques such as meditation, visualization, erasing psychic imprints (similar concept was covered in "The heartfulness way") and mindfulness are explained in detail. 

Physical cleansing techniques as prescribed in Ayurveda, the importance of fasting etc are also explained in easy-to-understand procedures.

This book will be a ready reckoner to understand wellness in a holistic way from the point of view of Ayurveda and Yoga. It is definitely worth owning a copy and referring to it often. Do check it out. The Kindle version is available for a price of Rs.79.

My favorite books

 

 I'm a minimalist when it comes to clothes, jewelry, shoes, bags etc.  But I can't say the same when it comes to books. I invest a good amount of money on books every year. I believe that a single idea or an "aha-moment" can change our lives forever. Such ideas or inspirations can come from interacting with people from different walks of life, which is definitely THE best option. But as I said in my previous post, I need to make time for meeting new people and having conversations that elevate my current thinking models. Given the various constraints (both within and external), books seem to be the second best option.

Every few months, a book lands up on my lap and creates such an impact that I wonder why I didn't read it earlier.

On the occasion of World Book Day (Apr 23rd), here is my list of favorite books in no particular order (well, except the first!).

1. Harry Potter series (Yes, right at the top always!)
2. All books of RK Narayan
3. All books of Ruskin Bond, the latest favorite being "A book of simple living"
4. Six thinking hats by Edward Debono
5. New Earth by Eckhart Tolle
6. Ikigai by Hector Garcia
7. The Gita for children by Roopa Pai
8. Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin
9. Deep Work by Cal Newport
10. Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport
11. Start with Why by Simon Senek
12. Drive by Daniel Pink
13. Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely
14. Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert
15. Aaraam Thinai by Dr. Sivaraman (Tamil)
16. The leader who had no title by Robin Sharma
17. Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
18. The last lecture by Randy Pausch

I'd love to know your list of favorite books. Do share in the comments below.

Conversations vs Connections

Ever since I read Cal Newport's Digital minimalism, I have reduced my phone usage drastically. For the past 10 days, my usage is less than an hour per day, which is a significant reduction compared to my earlier usage of 3-4 hours. One of the most important takeaways from this book for me is that we have replaced real conversations with short bursts of interaction happening in social media. And the worst part is that we think this substitution is equal and we seem to be okay with it. I have been making this mistake and it felt like quite a revelation while reading the chapter on conversations vs connections.

As I sit quietly and contemplate, the reason why I'm active on Instagram is not that I like the "hearts" or I want more followers. Either of them doesn't motivate me to post or check my phone frequently. What I have realized is that I CRAVE for conversations. I get excited to see comments on my posts or DMs. In a typical day, I have most of my real conversations with my 7-year old daughter. There is hardly any opportunity to have deep conversations with my husband on a daily basis as work takes away most of his time.

When I used to go to a full-time job a few years back, there have been many opportunities of having deep conversations with colleagues, though mostly related to work. This is also one of the key factors that is pushing me to opt for a work-from-office role next instead of a work-from-home role. I'm HOPING to meet a few like-minded people and share meaningful conversations on topics I care about. Those topics definitely aren't about fancy cars, abroad trips, latest gadgets, investments, buying retirement homes, Keto diet, new fancy pubs/eateries in Bangalore etc. In one of my last work assignments, these were the common topics of discussion around the lunch table. I would sit there, feeling utterly bored.

What are the topics I care about, you might ask? Here's my list in no particular order:

Climate change

Zero-waste lifestyle

Mindfulness

Minimalism

Organic gardening

Non-fiction Books

Continuous learning

Productivity

Power of deep work and focus

Spirituality

Ethics and values in work

Nutrition, healthy eating but with unpopular opinions (No calorie counting, macros counting or any diet focused)

Traditional cuisines, embracing local produce

Mental wellness

Positive psychology

Yoga and meditation

Energy/prana and its role in healing

Do more with less

Behavioral psychology

Motivation theories - why we do what we do

Parenting - child nutrition, inculcating values

Music
Passive Income Generation
Results-oriented workplace
Technology that elevates people's lives

Sending out this note to the universe so I could get to meet people who have similar topics in their list.