Millennials, you know the legacy of the “Boba Tea Obsession”. You’ve watched as stores slowly added boba drinks to their menus, as more and more people posted pictures of their drinks on Instagram and Snapchat, and tried it at least once.
There are two types of people in the world: those who swear by Boba drinks, and those who would rather have the political climate stay the same than have those tapioca balls anywhere near their mouth. You know what type of person you are. If you’re like me, you know the closest place to your house that has Boba, that really out of the way but amazing place that has the absolute best Boba, and the add-ins, details and price of your order. Photo Courtesy of Sara Anderson
But, do you know the facts about the actual Boba?
I certainly didn’t, which is why I’m writing this article for you to stay informed and educated on your favorite (or least favorite) drink.
Here are some Boba Tea facts to sip on:
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The drink can go by the name of “Boba Tea”, “Bubble Tea”, “Boba Juice”,“Pearl Milk Tea” or simply “Boba”.
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It is a Taiwanese-tea based drink that was invented in Taichung in the 1980s.
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The main ingredients found in the drink are tapioca, milk, creamer, brewed tea, sugar and water.
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The Tapioca balls are made from the roots of cassava plants. They are almost all complete starch, lacking in protein and nutrients.
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A typical Boba tea is between 200-400 calories. The empty calories in the Boba adds up, as just one ounce of pure Boba has 100 calories.
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Although Boba is often perceived to be healthy, it has been linked to harming a nutritional diet and weight gain if consumed too much and not burned off.
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The most popular varieties are bubble milk green tea with tapioca and the original bubble milk tea with tapioca.
Photo Courtesy of Sara Anderson
8. The tapioca gets its black color from brown sugar, although there are many variants on the Boba balls with color and flavor.
9. Boba tea is becoming more and more popular in the US and UK, especially in areas with high Asian populations.
No matter how addicting, it might be time to reconsider that weekly (or more) Boba stop, since sadly it’s actually unhealthy.
(Who am I kidding? Go get as much Boba as you want. Pretend these facts aren’t real. Live your own life.)