Beverage Base

Food · Drink · Food, Typed Supps

Mostly sugar with some cocoa — the milk you mix it into does most of the nutritional work.

Stage by stage

Intake (Dissolved, not chewed): The powder is already in solution, so mechanical digestion is skipped.
Stomach (Fast transit): Liquids empty quickly; milk protein and fat slow this more than water does.
Small intestine (Rapid sugar absorption): Sucrose is split at the gut wall and glucose absorbs quickly.
Circulation (Used or stored): Glucose not used for immediate energy prompts insulin release and is stored.

Time to effect

Under an hour: Blood glucose rises within roughly 30 to 45 minutes.

Allergens

None of the fourteen major allergens. Derived from what this food is, not from a product label.

Eating patterns

Fits: Vegan, Vegetarian, Pescatarian, Halal, Kosher, Gluten-free. Depends on the product: Low-FODMAP.

Satiety

Not scored: the satiety index is measured on 240 kcal servings, and nobody eats a 240 kcal serving of this. The question does not apply rather than the answer being unknown.

Cost band

Cheap — roughly £2.5 per kg, as a band midpoint rather than a price.

Key nutrients

Added sugar
Magnesium
Added vitamins and minerals (fortified products only)

Nutrition per 100g

Calories: 360
Protein: 5.6g
Carbohydrate: 76.3g
of which sugars: 74.3g
Fat: 4.8g
of which saturated: 2.9g
Fibre: 1.5g
Sodium: 160mg

Food vs. supplement

As a micronutrient vehicle these are inefficient: the fortified version supplies real added vitamins and iron, but every serve brings around 15g of added sugar with it.

Kitchen tip

Judge these by the serve, not the 100g column — two to three teaspoons is the standard measure, and the 100g figures shown here represent five to ten of them.

Common myth

"Fortified chocolate drink powders are a healthy way to get vitamins and minerals." In reality: Fortification is real — added iron, calcium and B vitamins are genuinely present — but it is carried by a powder that is roughly three-quarters sugar, and most of the protein and calcium in the finished mug comes from the milk rather than the powder.