From glowing skin to better digestion, Bollywood celebrities like Malaika Arora, Shilpa Shetty, and Kriti Sanon have been adding ghee to their morning routine and call it their secret to wellness. For many of them, it’s a part of their Ayurvedic lifestyle—a spoonful of ghee on an empty stomach to kickstart the day. But is this popular ritual as healthy as it sounds?
Ghee, or clarified butter, has long been a staple in Indian kitchens and Ayurvedic practices. It’s rich in fat, and traditionally seen as nourishing for the body and mind. Malaika Arora often shares how she includes ghee in her clean diet to fuel her workouts and keep her skin glowing. But not everyone agrees with this glowing endorsement, especially heart health experts.
In an episode of Figuring Out With Raj Shamani, Dr. Bimal Chhajer, a senior cardiologist who specialises in non-invasive cardiology, challenged the growing belief that ghee is a healthy fat. He warned that regular ghee consumption, especially in the amounts some influencers promote, could increase the risk of heart disease.
“Ghee is 100 per cent triglyceride,” Dr Chhajer explained. “One gram of fat has 9 calories, compared to roti or dal, which have around 4 to 5 calories per gram. It’s a very high-calorie food, and the worst for your weight if taken in excess.”
He also pointed out that Ayurveda, while valuable, is based on a 2,500-year-old system that hasn’t evolved with changing lifestyles. “Earlier, people used to do hard physical labour. Ghee was useful then. But now, we are not as active, yet the tradition continues,” he said.
Responding to the trend of starting the day with a spoonful of ghee, he called it “ekdam bekar baat” (not a good idea at all). He believes that such practices are outdated in today’s sedentary world and can add unnecessary fat to the diet without offering much benefit.
When asked whether ghee is better than oil for Indian cooking, he firmly said that people using it regularly, thinking it’s healthy, are simply “not well informed.”
So, do you really need ghee to stay fit or improve your digestion? According to experts like Dr. Chhajer, the answer is no, especially if you lead a mostly inactive lifestyle. Moderation is key, and blindly following celebrity trends may do more harm than good.
