The Ovaltine in my cupboard, product of Himmel Nutrition, USA, has a
different list of ingredients than was posted by someone else.  Perhaps
the British version, (available here in some specialty food stores in
the U.S.) is different?  The US version doesn't list dried egg or
artificial color.  For the malt flavor the ingredients are: sugar,
maltodextrin, toasted defatted soy flour, barley malt extract, whey,
caramel color, beet extract, whole milk, nonfat milk, salt, molasses,
mono- and diglycerides, natural caramel flavor, vanillin.  The chocolate
malt flavor has a similar list, with the addition of cocoa processed
with alkali.

There is also a list of added vitamins and minerals.  One serving, 4
Tbs. of the dry powder has the following percentages of the U.S. RDA:

Vitamin A, C, B-2, Niacin and B-6: 45%
Calcium and Phosphorus: 8%
Iron: 15%
Vitamin D: 50%
Vitamin B-1: 60%
The added milk in the final drink increases some of those percentages.

  Brewers' yeast and dark beers were once recommended for the B vitamins
-- perhaps the drink's vitamin content might be helpful, provided
neither the mother or baby was sensitive to milk. Warm Ovaltine is
traditionally a bedtime drink to promote sleep.  If a mother is
stressed, I can think of a lot worse things she could drink to seek a
warm, relaxed, cared-for feeling.

Maybe this suggestion could be put into that large "couldn't hurt"
category, but it doesn't seem like the first line of attack.

Margaret Wills, LLLL, IBCLC
(no financial interest in Ovaltine, even though we have both flavors on
hand here...)

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