{"id":66,"date":"2021-05-30T14:45:32","date_gmt":"2021-05-30T14:45:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ketodietchoice.com\/?p=66"},"modified":"2022-02-04T21:53:24","modified_gmt":"2022-02-04T21:53:24","slug":"keto-alcohol-the-best-and-the-worst-drinks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ketodietchoice.com\/keto-alcohol-the-best-and-the-worst-drinks\/","title":{"rendered":"Keto alcohol \u2013 the best and the worst drinks"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A\u00a0ketogenic diet\u00a0is one built on very limited amounts of carbs, often 20 to 50 grams (g) of net carbs per day. (Net carbs is grams of total carbohydrates minus\u00a0fiber\u00a0grams.) That is not a lot, and because alcohol is known for containing carbs, you might think that you can\u2019t drink on a keto diet.<\/p>\n

If you like the occasional glass of wine, you\u2019re in luck: \u201cYes, you can drink alcohol on a keto diet,\u201d says April Murray, RD, founder of Orange County Nutrition Coaching in Costa Mesa, California.<\/p>\n

Because the amount of carbs varies so much between hard liquor, mixed drinks, beer, and wine, choosing the right one matters when it comes to keeping your body in\u00a0ketosis, a state where your body is burning fat for its primary fuel rather than carbohydrates. \u201cAlcohol can be keto-friendly, but too much can slow down your weight loss progress,\u201d says Lauren Weiss, PhD, a keto nutritionist in La Jolla, California. \u201cWhen you\u2019re on a\u00a0low-carb, high-fat diet, your liver metabolism changes because glycogen stores in your body have been depleted. When you drink alcohol, your body may use the alcohol for energy instead of fat,\u201d she says. If that happens too often, it can stall your progress.<\/p>\n

For general health guidelines, the\u00a0Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends\u00a0adults drink alcohol moderately. That\u2019s defined as one standard drink per day for women and two standard drinks per day for men. A standard drink is equivalent to 12 ounces (oz) of beer, 5 oz of wine, or 1.5 oz of liquor.<\/p>\n

Yet for keto dieters, having a drink every day is going to be too much. \u201cWhile an occasional drink is okay, drinking daily may slow down the fat-burning process,\u201d says Dr. Weiss. Alcohol, after all, is empty calories \u2014 and when it comes to maximizing your nutrition on a keto diet, alcohol should be limited.<\/p>\n

When you do drink, follow these expert-approved guidelines for the best and worst alcohol choices:<\/p>\n

5 Alcoholic Drinks You Can Have in Moderation on the Keto Diet<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n
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Dry White Wine<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
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Varietals like sauvignon blanc, Italian pinot grigio, and pinot blanc are lower-carb options, says Weiss. \u201cAll of these contain around 1 g of carbs per oz, or less,\u201d she says. One 5-oz glass of\u00a0sauvignon blanc, for instance, has 3 g of carbs, 0 g of fat, and 0.1 g of protein, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n

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Dry Red Wine<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
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Weiss recommends a cabernet sauvignon, pinot noir, or merlot, which are drier varietals that offer fewer carbs per oz than sweeter red wines. One glass of\u00a0cabernet sauvignon\u00a0has 3.8 g of carbs, 0 g of fat, and 0.1 g of protein. If you\u2019re looking for a great brand, she likes\u00a0Dry Farm Wines, a wine club that supplies small farm\u2013sourced sugar-free and lower-in-alcohol wines.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n

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Champagne or Prosecco<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
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Start popping bottles (responsibly). Champagne gets the go-ahead from Weiss because it will have less than 1 g of carbs per oz. Go for brut (rather than \u201cextra dry\u201d or \u201csweet\u201d), which has a lower amount of carbs. A standard 5-oz glass of\u00a0of\u00a0a California champagne called Korbel has 4 g of carbs, 0 g of fat, and 0 g of protein.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n

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Hard Liquor<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
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\u201cSpirits don\u2019t have carbs,\u201d says\u00a0Olivia Wagner, RDN, integrative dietitian-nutritionist. Have 1 oz of your favorite hard liquor \u2014 vodka, tequila, rum, gin, or whiskey \u2014 and add a mixer like soda water or a flavored sparkling water (like\u00a0LaCroix\u00a0or Waterloo) for a drink with no calories, sugar, or carbohydrates. For reference,\u00a0one shot of tequila has 0 g each of carbs, fat, and protein, for 97 calories. Note that alcohol has 7 calories per gram.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n

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Mojito<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
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A\u00a0standard mojito\u00a0\u2014 made from rum, lime juice, mint, sugar, and soda water \u2014 contains just 5 g of net carbs (as well as 0 g fat and 0.2 g protein). It\u2019ll account for a lot of carbs that day, but it is possible to fit one in on a day when you really want a mixed drink. But you can do even better with a twist on the mojito, says Wagner. Leave out the sugar, and add rum to muddled mint, soda water, and top with a lime twist.<\/p>\n

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The 5 Worst Alcohol Choices on a Keto Diet<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n
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Beer<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
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Sorry, but whether you like fancy IPAs, ales, or lagers, beer, unless it\u2019s light, is out. (A 12-oz can of Bud Light, for example, contains\u00a0only 4.6 g of carbs.) \u201cBeer is made with barley, which is then converted to sugar. Then, yeast is added, which acts on that sugar and increases carbs even more,\u201d says Weiss. Considering that a\u00a0can of beer\u00a0(12 fluid oz) has 13 g of carbs, 0 g of fat, and 1.7 g of protein, you can have one beer and then have to severely limit the rest of your carbs for the day. \u201cIf you waste carbs on beer, you can\u2019t have green veggies or\u00a0berries,\u201d she says. All that to say, it\u2019s not a healthy way to use of your carb allotment. (Oh, and if you can\u2019t live without beer, the keto diet is probably not right for you, she says.)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n

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Vodka Tonic<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
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Tonic water contains a ton of sugar. It\u2019s deceptive because it\u2019s often confused with soda water, which is just carbonated H20 (meaning no carbs or calories). On the other hand, a\u00a0vodka tonic\u00a0has 15 g of carbs (all from added sugar in the tonic water), 0 g of fat, and 0 g of protein.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n

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Diet Coke (or Regular Coke) and Rum<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
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Some people on a keto diet choose to consume artificial sweeteners. While they are technically keto-friendly, experts generally advise against it. \u201cI have clients who lose weight just by cutting out diet sodas,\u201d says Murray. It also goes without saying that soda of any kind \u2014 including regular, nondiet soda \u2014 is not allowed on keto. A 12-oz can of Coca-Cola contains a whopping\u00a039 g of carbs!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n

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Mixed Drinks<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
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Most mixed drinks are a combination of hard liquor plus sugar, fruit juice, or purees. A couple of examples? An\u00a0Old-Fashioned\u00a0(made with sugar, bitters, and whiskey) has 10.1 g of net carbs, 0.1 g of fat, and 0.3 g of protein. A\u00a0margarita\u00a0has 36 g of carbs, 0.2 g of fat, and 0.2 g of protein.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n

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Mimosa<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
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Yes, it\u2019s made with Champagne or prosecco, but it also has a hefty amount of orange juice, which means a lot of sugar. If you\u2019re on a strict keto diet and aiming for 20 g of net carbs per day, this one drink will eat up more than one-half your carb budget. One\u00a0mimosa\u00a0has 12.9 g of net carbs, 0.1 g of fat, and less than 1 g of protein.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A\u00a0ketogenic diet\u00a0is one built on very limited amounts of carbs, often 20 to 50 grams (g) of net carbs per day. (Net carbs is grams of total carbohydrates minus\u00a0fiber\u00a0grams.) That is not a lot, and because alcohol is known for containing carbs, you might think that you can\u2019t drink on a keto diet. If you …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ketodietchoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ketodietchoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ketodietchoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ketodietchoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ketodietchoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=66"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ketodietchoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":67,"href":"https:\/\/ketodietchoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66\/revisions\/67"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ketodietchoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=66"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ketodietchoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=66"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ketodietchoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=66"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}