# English Dopers - what is a "digestive"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 19, 2003, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085 "2003-11-19T13:45:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/1 "2003-11-19T13:45:37Z")
Per this story [WE EXPOSE BIGGEST ROYAL SECURITY SCANDAL EVER](http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/allnews/content_objectid=13637615_method=full_siteid=50143_headline=-WE%2DEXPOSE%2DBIGGEST%2DROYAL%2DSECURITY%2DSCANDAL%2DEVER-name_page.html) > [@](#): > > Only hours before the president’s arrival, Parry was sent to lay out chocolates and fruit for the US leader and his following. > > He was allowed into every room to deliver a medium box of Bendicks special chocolates, a glass jar of Charbonnel & Walker mints, a jar of chocolate digestives ---
**Author:** ![croakdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b77776/32.png) [@croakdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/croakdale)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/2 "2003-11-19T13:50:03Z")
a biscuit, or a cookie as you would call it. ---
**Author:** ![Jabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b5e925/32.png) [@Jabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jabba)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/3 "2003-11-19T13:51:59Z")
[Digestive biscuits](http://www.greatbritishkitchen.co.uk/recipes/biscuits/digestivebiscuits.htm) ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/4 "2003-11-19T13:55:21Z")
That has to be one of the least appealing names for a treat I’ve ever heard. It sounds like medicine. At the very least it sounds like a back-handed compliment. “Well, they’re digestible.” ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/5 "2003-11-19T13:59:18Z")
It’s an old Victorian name thats has surpassed its original unappealing name - we don’t even think about the meaning of the word, just know that it’s a rather lovely wholemeal cookie. ---
**Author:** ![croakdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b77776/32.png) [@croakdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/croakdale)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/6 "2003-11-19T14:00:47Z")
here is some more info on digestives. [http://www.nicecupofteaandasitdown.com/biscuits/previous.php3?item=9](http://www.nicecupofteaandasitdown.com/biscuits/previous.php3?item=9) This is a biscuit that has been around for years… kind of plain and boring, but a lot of people like them for dunking in their tea. ---
**Author:** ![Futile\_Gesture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f05b48/32.png) [@Futile\_Gesture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Futile_Gesture)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/7 "2003-11-19T14:01:00Z")
That’s exactly why they’re called that. They were first marketed as aids to the digestion. No idea why. ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/8 "2003-11-19T14:01:24Z")
It’s a word I refuse to use. It just sounds like you’re snacking on Pepto-Bismol or something. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/9 "2003-11-19T14:04:17Z")
I love 'em. [Yum!](http://www.britta.com/Images/travels/UK/biscuit.gif) Apparently the taste is not unlike “Graham crackers” that you Americans have. Personally, I find the idea of snacking on something called Graham far more unpleasant than a digestive. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/10 "2003-11-19T14:05:46Z")
> [@](#): > > They were first marketed as aids to the digestion. > > No idea why. I assume this is because they are made with wholemeal, and therefore contain more fibre than other biscuits. Keep you regular - the Victorians loved that. ---
**Author:** ![smam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/46a35a/32.png) [@smam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smam)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/11 "2003-11-19T14:07:56Z")
OMG that’s a snub on Bush if ever there was one. Chocolate Hob-Nobs is where it’s at. More addictive than crack. Unless I am confusing Hob-Nobs with actual crack. In which case crack is more addictive. Don’t get me started on chocolate crack. ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/12 "2003-11-19T14:11:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by smam \* > \*\*Don’t get me started on … crack. \*\* Sounds like it’s too late 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Rayne\_Man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/df705f/32.png) [@Rayne\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rayne_Man)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/13 "2003-11-19T15:22:05Z")
A few weeks ago I was watching a TV programme where a British and an American family swopped homes for a holday. The American woman refused to give digestive biscuits to her children because she thought they were a laxative. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/14 "2003-11-19T15:26:48Z")
Our Graham crackers were originally developed by Dr. Graham in the 19th century to aid the digestion and lessen sexual desires. He was similar to the later (and more famous) Dr. Kellogg in a lot of his ideas regarding food and sex. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/15 "2003-11-19T15:35:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by smam \* > **Chocolate Hob-Nobs is where it’s at.** I hope you mean _plain_ chocolate. ---
**Author:** ![RussellM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed8c4c/32.png) [@RussellM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RussellM)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/16 "2003-11-19T15:52:50Z")
As a slight hijack - we have Digestive biscuits in the rest of the UK as well. Or were you specifically seeking an English perspective? Russell (from the Scottish part of England) ---
**Author:** ![smam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/46a35a/32.png) [@smam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smam)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/17 "2003-11-19T15:53:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tapioca Dextrin \* > \*\*I hope you mean _plain_ chocolate. \*\* Of course I meant plain chocolate, I am not the kind of sicko that would eat a dark chocolate Hob-Nob. Tuh! The nerve of the woman. ---
**Author:** ![Popup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/94ad74/32.png) [@Popup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Popup)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/18 "2003-11-19T16:08:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by RussellM \* > **As a slight hijack - we have Digestive biscuits in the rest of the UK as well. Or were you specifically seeking an English perspective?** And let me point out that they exist in most of (the rest of) Europe as well - although in France they seem to be shelved among the ‘exotic forreign food’. Unfortunately chocolate Hob-Nobs are less easy to find - although if you’re a real addict you can find them even there. ---
**Author:** ![everton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ecb155/32.png) [@everton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/everton)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/19 "2003-11-19T16:26:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by smam \* > Of course I meant plain chocolate, I am not the kind of sicko that would eat a dark chocolate Hob-Nob. Tuh! The nerve of the woman. Plain _means_ dark. The alternative would be “milk chocolate”. ---
**Author:** ![One\_And\_Only\_Wanderers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/838e76/32.png) [@One\_And\_Only\_Wanderers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/One_And_Only_Wanderers)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085/20 "2003-11-19T16:29:04Z")
I prefer to munch down on penguins 😉 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-dopers-what-is-a-digestive/214085.md?page=2)