If you’re like me, your sweet tooth didn’t go away when you started your keto diet. Being able to satisfy that sweet tooth has been critical to my success in maintaining a keto lifestyle. See which keto sweeteners will help you see the results you’re looking for with a low-carb diet.
How Alternative Sweeteners Affect your Keto Diet
There’s a lot of confusion regarding alternative sweeteners and their effect on ketosis. So, in this article, I will break down the types of sweeteners, how they affect ketosis, and the pros and cons of each.
What Makes A Good Keto Sweetener?
How can we decipher the difference between keto-friendly sweeteners and keto sugar substitutes we should avoid? In general, the best alternative sweeteners for keto will:
- Contain virtually no calories and net carbs, including no hidden sources of carbs.
- Have no effect on insulin levels (measured by low Glycemic Index) and blood sugar levels.
- Have either no (or a positive) effect on other biomarkers like cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood pressure.
- Be safe to use and cause no side effects when consumed at reasonable doses.
- Have the ability to be exposed to high temperatures without becoming bitter, turning toxic, or degrading into simple sugars.
Breaking it all Down
There are three main categories of sweeteners to consider for a keto diet and we will classify and decipher them for you. They are:
- Natural Sugars
- Sugar Alcohols
- Artificial Sugars
1. Natural Sweeteners and Keto
Natural sweeteners, as their name implies, come from nature and aren’t developed in a lab. There are 2 main natural sweeteners to consider for a Keto diet:
You may be asking yourself, “Is Stevia Keto?” Well, here is your answer:
- Stevia is an extract from the Stevia plant and is approximately 200 to 300 times sweeter than sugar. It’s gained popularity in the last few years and has become widely available at grocery stores, restaurants and coffee shops around the world. You would be amazed that it’s been used as a sweetener in Paraguayan and Brazilian cultures for over a thousand years.
- Stevia has been linked to lower blood sugar levels.
- People with high blood pressure were happy to report lower levels after using Stevia.
- Additional studies have linked Stevia to reducing inflammation, diarrhea, and tumors and improving the regulation of the immune system.
- Truvia is an example of a Stevia Based sweetener and is in fact, one of my go-tos. Truvia keto sweet treats are some of my favorites.
Is monk fruit sweetener keto? Read more about it below:
- Monk fruit (also known as Luo Han Guo) is from Southeast Asia and looks like a lime or melon combination.
- The extract is about 150 to 200 times sweeter than sugar and contains no calories as well.
- You can purchase the dried fruit at Chinese herbal stores. If you want to put it in your coffee, you’ll probably want an extract powder or liquid form.
- Liquid monk fruit extract, monk fruit extract powder, and monk fruit keto sweetener blends (with stevia, xylitol, and/or erythritol) are your best options. They can all be found online.
- Some of my favorite monk fruit keto sweeteners are Besti and Lakanto.
My Conclusion on Natural Keto Sweeteners
Both Stevia and Monk Fruit have a glycemic index of 0, which means they should not affect your blood sugar (insulin) at all. However, some forms of less expensive Stevia are mixed with other sweeteners or bulking agents (e.g., maltodextrin, dextrose, and polydextrose). These could have an impact on your blood sugar levels. Note that Stevia packets, such as Stevia in the Raw, typically contain carb-ridden fillers like dextrose.
Some people think Stevia has an aftertaste but the liquid drops seem to have less of this. I wouldn’t use Stevia in chocolate recipes as many people get a severe and rather awful delayed flavor impression (especially when heated).
So no hot chocolate, and no keto brownies with Stevia. Monk fruit, while a good keto option is harder to find and has to be mixed with other sweeteners for baking so it’s not at the top of my list.
2. Sugar Alcohol Keto Benefits
As the name implies, Sugar Alcohols are hybrids of sugar molecules and alcohol molecules. Don’t let the name scare you because these alcohol molecules will not get you drunk. The name “sugar alcohol” refers to a category of chemical compounds, not ethanol. This is the alcohol molecule that intoxicates us.
Because sugar alcohols have a similar chemical structure as sugar, they activate the sweet taste receptors on your tongue. Unlike most artificial and natural sweeteners, sugar alcohols contain calories and net carbs, but much less than plain table sugar.
- Erythritol is a sugar alcohol found naturally in some fruits and vegetables and is commonly extracted from corn.
- Of all the sugar alcohol sweeteners, erythritol contributes the least calories and net carbs to the diet and erythritol doesn’t change blood sugar or insulin which makes it very popular.
- Erythritol has also been found to act as an antioxidant and may improve blood vessel function in people with type 2 diabetes. These benefits may help reduce the risk of heart disease, but more studies are needed.
- The most commonly found erythritol on the market is Truvia. Many people confuse Truvia with Stevia, but while it’s a sweetener made from a compound found in the stevia plant its primary ingredient is erythritol.
- It does, however, tend to leave a cooling taste in a lot of people’s mouths–including mine. The sweetener also tends to crystalize if refrigerated so you have to watch out for that when baking or cooking with erythritol.
- Try this great Erythritol sweetener: Besti
