For those embracing a ketogenic lifestyle, meticulously monitoring food and beverage choices is paramount for success. Staying hydrated is crucial, especially when your body adapts to a severely restricted carbohydrate intake. This article delves into the role of seltzer water within the keto framework, exploring its benefits, potential drawbacks, and how it fits into your daily hydration strategy.
The Importance of Hydration on Keto
During the initial stages of a keto diet, the body undergoes significant shifts in hydration status. Carbohydrates are stored as glycogen, which binds to water. As glycogen stores deplete, the body releases water, leading to initial weight loss. Furthermore, reducing processed foods, typically high in sodium, impacts electrolyte and fluid balance.
Maintaining adequate hydration is vital to avoid the "keto flu," a cluster of symptoms like fatigue, headaches, and muscle cramps that can arise during the initial adaptation phase. Replenishing electrolytes is also essential to counter the effects of reduced sodium intake.
Keto-Friendly Drink Options
Staying hydrated is an important part of any diet, but is especially important when eating low carb to avoid “keto flu.” Plus, water possesses a wide variety of other health benefits, like regulating body temperature and maximizing physical performance.
Water
Water should be your number one source of hydration.
Read also: Low-Carb Seltzer Guide
Sparkling Water
Sparkling water is a great and bubbly way to hydrate with an added dash of zero carb and zero calorie flavor.
Coffee
You don't have to sacrifice your morning pick-me-up! Having your cup-of-energy black or with keto-friendly coffee creamers are both great ways to continue limiting carbs, maintaining a keto diet, and more.
Unsweetened Tea
Unsweetened tea, served either hot or iced, keeps you on track and is a great keto-friendly choice for a warm day. On top of being perfect for your next picnic, this drink is both carb- and calorie-free.
Diet Soda
Craving a cold soda, cola, or pop? As the use of artificial sweeteners lowers the carb count, diet soda on keto is a permitted indulgence, as long as you’re not overdoing it.
Non-Dairy Milk
Dairy milk on keto may need to be sidelined, but nut milk is ready to shine. Unsweetened cashew or almond milk provides fats and protein without the carbs, making it ideal to consume while on a keto diet.
Read also: Weight Loss and Hard Seltzers
Keto-Friendly Shakes
Many shakes minimize carbohydrate consumption while providing a quick energy boost. While there are many great keto-friendly options, keep an eye out; some protein shakes contain a lot of extra sugar and carbs. Even better, Atkins shakes offer ready-to-drink shakes in delicious flavors like vanilla, chocolate, and more that work perfectly with your low carb lifestyle!
Bone Broth
Bone broth is a tasty drink to many! Bone broth may help maintain a healthy gut, restore collagen, and support a strong immune system.
Drinks to Avoid While Eating Keto
When drinking on the keto diet, it’s important to be mindful of hidden sugars that could kick you out of ketosis.
Non-Diet Soda
One 12 oz. Pepsi may seem relatively innocent, but in reality it has a whopping 41 grams of carbs and could derail any keto-related progress.
Sports/Energy Drinks
These bright-colored drinks can be tempting when searching for an added boost of energy. While living keto, sticking to energy-filled foods is the better option as sports and energy drinks are ridden with sugar and carbs.
Read also: What to Feed a Chinese Water Dragon
Vitamin Water
Packed with sugar, standard vitamin water should be avoided in order to stay on a low carb diet. Yet, similar options exist without the added sugar. One tasty and keto-friendly alternative is Vitamin Water Zero.
Hot Chocolate
Santa does not follow a keto lifestyle. For those who do, most hot chocolate should not be included in a keto diet due to the carbs and sugars present. Maybe Santa can try these low carb holiday cookies instead.
Mocha
The typical combination of milk, whipped cream, and mocha sauce may make for a sweet treat, but it also makes for a carb-filled beverage.
Fruit Juices
Watch out: An 8 oz. cup of apple juice contains roughly 24 grams of carbs, making it a beverage to steer clear from. Added sugars and low carbs do not frequently come together.
Lemonade
The neighborhood children may be trying to sell you on this beverage, but don’t fall for it! Typically jam-packed with sugar, those partaking in a keto lifestyle should be wary of the ingredients present in lemonade.
Drinks You Should Try to Avoid on the Keto Diet
Avoid sweetened drinks like regular soda and fruit juice (even 100 percent juice), which are packed with sugar and carbs. Dairy milk is also high in carbs, so it’s not keto-friendly. Skip (or at the very least, limit) diet drinks, too, says Jill Gulotta, a registered dietitian nutritionist in private practice in White Plains, New York.
Can You Drink Diet Soda on Keto?
While beverages such as Diet Coke (or diet soda in general) are technically keto-compliant, they may lead you to crave more carbs. A mini review suggested that these artificially sweetened sips may trick the body into craving the calories and carbs it believes it’s getting from the diet soda. When your body realizes it isn’t getting them, you may make up for it by overeating.
Regardless of whether that effect would hold true on a keto diet, there are a lot of better drink options.
Seltzer Water: A Keto-Friendly Choice
Seltzer water, with its carbonation and lack of sugar, emerges as an excellent choice for those on a keto diet. It provides a refreshing alternative to sugary drinks and aids in hydration without adding carbohydrates to your daily intake.
What is Seltzer Water?
Seltzer water is simply plain water that has been carbonated. This carbonation can occur naturally, as in the case of some mineral springs, or artificially, through the addition of carbon dioxide gas. The result is a bubbly, calorie-free, and carb-free beverage.
Benefits of Seltzer Water on Keto
- Hydration: Seltzer water contributes to your daily fluid intake, crucial for overall health and well-being, especially during the initial phases of the keto diet.
- Zero Carbs and Calories: It doesn't add to your daily carbohydrate or calorie count, making it a guilt-free choice.
- Alternative to Sugary Drinks: Seltzer water can help curb cravings for sugary sodas and juices, making it easier to adhere to the keto diet.
- Versatility: It can be enjoyed plain or infused with keto-friendly flavors like lemon, lime, or other low-carb fruits.
Potential Downsides
- Dental Health: Some studies suggest that carbonated beverages may contribute to dental erosion over time. However, this effect is generally less pronounced than with sugary sodas.
- Artificial Sweeteners: Some diet sodas that mimic seltzer water in flavor may contain artificial sweeteners that could have potential negative health effects. Opt for naturally flavored or unsweetened options whenever possible.
- Individual Sensitivities: Some individuals may experience bloating or gas from carbonated beverages.
Seltzer Water and Keto-Friendly Flavors
One of the best aspects of seltzer water is its versatility. You can easily customize it with keto-friendly flavors to create exciting and refreshing drinks.
Natural Flavors
Adding slices of lemon, lime, cucumber, or berries can infuse seltzer water with natural flavors without adding significant carbs.
Keto-Friendly Water Enhancers
Liquid or powdered water enhancers sweetened with stevia or other natural zero-calorie sweeteners are readily available.
Experimenting with Flavors
Consider trying different combinations to find your favorites. Mint and cucumber, strawberry and lime, or lemon and ginger are all excellent choices.
Seltzer Water Brands and Reviews
Several brands offer a variety of seltzer water flavors suitable for the keto diet. Here are a few examples based on user reviews:
- LaCroix: A popular choice known for its wide range of flavors and zero-sugar content. The orange flavor stands out and pairs well with fresh or frozen strawberries.
- Spindrift: This brand uses real fruit juice to flavor its sparkling water, resulting in a more natural taste. The Lemon flavor, with 0g sugar, is a highly recommended option.
- San Pellegrino Essenza: While some flavors may not be as impactful as others, they offer a zero-sugar option for those seeking a hint of flavor.
- Bubly: Similar to San Pellegrino, Bubly provides a variety of flavors, but some may find the taste subtle.
User Experiences
- One user found Spindrift Lemon flavor to be surprisingly enjoyable and a lifesaver for stomach aches.
- Another user looking for a Diet Coke alternative without aspartame recommends Virgil's Cola.
- Olipop's full flavor sodas surprised some users, with the Orange and Grape flavors delivering fruity taste without the sugary aftertaste.
Keto-Friendly Alcoholic Drinks
Many people who enter the keto diet are delighted that the keto diet does not forbid alcohol. When it comes to alcoholic drinks, rum, tequila, vodka, gin, and whiskey are all low on carbs, provided they are not mixed with mixers loaded with carbs and sugars.
Low Carb Beer
Beer is typically high in carbs, as it contains sugars from wheat that aren’t fermented into ethanol. Yet, low carb beer is made by either using less wheat or allowing a longer fermentation process to more completely convert the sugars into alcohol. Some of the lowest carb beers, which clock in at 2-3 grams of net carbs per 12-ounce (355-mL) bottle, are Budweiser Select 55, Michelob Ultra, and Miller 64 (23, 24, 25).
Hard Liquor
Hard liquors like vodka, whiskey, rum, and tequila are naturally carb-free and therefore appropriate for the keto diet. However, you should be careful with mixed drinks, as they’re often loaded with sugar from fruit juices or soda. You should also check the label on flavored liquors for any added sugars. To keep your drinks low carb, try drinking hard liquor straight or use zero-carb mixers like diet soda or seltzer water. Try to avoid tonic water, as it contains added sugar.
Low Carb Hard Seltzer
You can also choose low carb hard seltzers, which are made with flavored seltzer water or sparkling water and added liquor. If you happen to avoid gluten, you’ll want to check the label carefully because many of them are made with malt liquor.
Keto-Friendly Cocktails
Cocktails are fun, but they are loaded with carbs (sometimes over 30 grams per serving), making them a keto dieter’s worst nightmare. It’s not the alcohol itself that is dangerous, but the syrups, sweeteners, juices, and sodas that are mixed with the base alcohol to make up the cocktail. For a real skinny cocktail, try Hella’s Bitters & Soda - a sparkling apéritif with just a hint of alcohol, zero sugars, a gram of carbs, and 10 calories per serving (12 oz). Blackberry Hibiscus Bellini contains only 10g of carbs per serving. Tonic water is a favorite in summer cocktails but is high in calories. Mingle Mocktails Blood Orange Elder Flower Mimosa is another fantastic mixer. It can be served chilled, garnished with a slice of orange, or enjoyed as a cocktail with prosecco or any other spirit. A classic mojito contains at least 14g of total carbohydrates and 160 calories. You don’t have to go off alcohol when on the keto diet. However, experts believe that alcohol can slow your weight loss if you drink too much, drink high-carb alcohol, or use high-carb, high-sugar mixers to create cocktails.