By: Nick Bikoff

2/14/2023

Boba, the internationally respected drink. But is it as good as it seems? Well, I have an answer. No. Its pearls are too chewy, it can be hard to digest, and it has very little health benefits.

First of all, its pearls are too chewy. The tapioca pearls are made out of tapioca starch, which comes from a derivative of the cassava plant. According to Bossenstore.com, “The starch makes the tapioca pearls very chewy. The nature of starch makes the pearls chewy, but at the same time very sensitive to humidity and temperature.” This also proves that boba can be hard to store for long-term.

Second, boba can be hard to digest. According to Health.com, “an additive sometimes used in boba pearls, called guar gum, can cause digestive problems.” Guar gum is made out of a plant called Guar, also known as the cluster bean, and is used as food and vegetables. 90% of the world’s Guar is grown in India and Pakistan, where they add the additives to the guar and make Guar Gum, which is pumped into the boba pearls.

In case you don’t know, the liver filters blood and adds nutrients into the blood, and makes it non-toxic. Liver failure could mean death, and that’s exactly what boba is doing to you.Another case of boba having very little health benefits is shown in the fact that tapioca pearls are made out of the tapioca plant, which is almost entirely starch. Starch has a couple of healthy qualities, but almost all of them are non-existent after making the boba pearls. Tapioca itself also has very little health benefits.

All in all, boba is not good or good for you because its pearls are too chewy, it can be hard to digest, and it has very little health benefits, which include increased risk of obesity, increased risk of diabetes, and liver cancer.

Contributor Bio

Nick Bikoff is a 6th grader at Edgewood Junior High School. He does taekwondo and is a green belt. He enjoys the potatoes at China Star Buffet. He also plays the alto saxophone and read all summer about embouchure and fingerings. He wants to play piano but currently does not own one. He knows a little bit of guitar.