The point of the ketogenic diet is not to wipe out all carbs completely, but just reduce them so they do not affect your blood sugar and so that your body does not rely on them to function. You want your body to take its energy from fat instead, and paying attention to net carbohydrates helps you reach that coveted state of ketosis.
What Are Net Carbs?
Net carbs are a major feature of the ketogenic diet. While many low-carb diets seem to concentrate on eliminating as many carbohydrates as possible from what you eat daily, that’s not actually the case. With the exception of very strict, medically necessary ketogenic diets, you want some carbs — just not as your primary energy source.
What “Net” Means
Your net carbs are the number of carbohydrate grams you’ve eaten that are not from fiber or sugar alcohols. Total carbohydrates are the total number of grams from all forms of carbs. The carbs left over after you subtract fiber and keto-friendly sugar alcohols from total carbs are the ones that tend to affect your blood sugar levels, and sometimes you’ll hear them called “impact carbs”.
MY LATEST VIDEOSYou want to eat fibrous foods no matter what diet you’re following. This nutrient may help ward off disease, and it keeps your intestines functioning well. But there’s another reason you want it: It allows you to have a more varied keto-based diet. Eating vegetables and even some fruits lets you get more of your vitamins and minerals from natural sources, rather than relying on supplements.
Sugar alcohol, like erythritol and xylitol, tends not to affect blood sugar either and are often considered to be non-impact carbs. They do contribute to your calorie total, but it’s quite common to find keto diet advice that allows you to subtract sugar alcohol grams from your total carbs. In fact, many keto-approved plans use these substitutes successfully.
How to Use Net Carb Calculations
When you look at what you’ve eaten for the day, assuming you’ve used an app to track everything (that’s much easier than tracking by hand on a keto diet), you’ll want to see that your net carb amount does not exceed your daily limit. Your total carbohydrates may seem high, but once you subtract the non-impact carb grams, you should have a number at or below the limit. For ketogenic diets, this limit can be anywhere from 20 to 50 grams; it can take some trial and error to find the best level for you. Depending on the type of ketogenic diet you’re following, you may have days when your total carbs can go above that limit (e.g., refeed days, cheat days).
Conclusion
Net carbohydrates are an essential factor in calculating what you need to eat daily. When you consistently meet your goals, you should feel more satisfied, find it easier to stick to the eating plan and feel better overall.
| Nutritional and medical disclaimer |
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| Please note that I am not a nutritional or medical professional. I do not give out any medical advice. I only share my own experience on this blog and encourage you to consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. The nutritional information provided for my recipes is an estimate. Please calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. None of the recipes I post are meant to be used by any specific clinical population. The ingredients in my recipes do not affect my glucose levels or cause any allergic reactions to me. You should use my recipes and shared experience at your discretion. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained on this website. |
I understand that not all sugar alcohols are equal. Isn’t maltitol a sugar alcohol which does affect your blood sugar?
Yeah, we should have specifically written “keto-friendly sugar alcohols.” We don’t recommend maltitol.
thank you for the comment!