The keto diet is a low-carb high-fat diet, which means sugar restrictions. Of course, you still have to maintain a healthy level of blood sugar and this is why many keto products feature sugar substitutes.
One of the most popular sugar substitutes is sugar alcohol – an alternative that features fewer calories and doesn’t boost your blood sugar levels. Although widely marketed as a perfect match for keto, sugar alcohols are a bit more complicated.
Sugar and Keto
As mentioned, keto is based on eating little-to-no carbohydrates and lots of fats. This is done so that your body can start burning fats for energy, as a part of the process called ketosis.
What Are Sugar Alcohols?
Sugar alcohols, also known as polyols, are widely used in the food industry as sweeteners in sugarless products. Despite the name, sugar alcohols are neither alcohols nor sugars. They are something of a hybrid compound, most accurately described as a type of carbohydrate.
Although polyols occur naturally in certain fruits and vegetables, they are usually made from glucose, starch, and sucrose.
Common Sugar Alcohols
If you didn’t recognize them as “polyols”, these are some frequently referenced sugar alcohol names that you may be more familiar with:
- Maltitol
- Sorbitol
- Mannitol
- Xylitol
- Erythritol
- Isomalt
Good or Bad?
Health-wise, sugar alcohols come with upshots and downsides. For one, refined sugar is widely known as harmful for your teeth, sugary drinks included. With sugar alcohols, however, refined sugar is replaced and your oral cavity is in safer hands. In fact, xylitol, for instance, inhibits the development of harmful bacteria in your mouth.
Sugar alcohols are also prebiotics, which act as fertilizers for the healthy bacteria in your gut.
Sugar alcohols such as xylitol also act as a protective measure against bone abrasion and loss.
On the other hand, sugar alcohols have been known to cause digestive issues. It is also a common misconception that sugar alcohols don’t raise blood sugar, as some of them definitely do. Finally, sugar alcohols may inhibit weight loss.
Are Sugar Alcohols Keto?
Most people are reluctant to take on the keto diet because it severely limits their intake of sweets. The problem here is that they think that their current intake of milk chocolate and other sweets with refined sugars is natural. This is definitely prone to change so, if you’re worried that you aren’t cut out for keto, you are most likely wrong.
Like anything else, sugar addictions can be moderated and even completely abolished and sugar alcohols can prove of huge help here. So, yes, sugar alcohols can be used to complement your keto diet, not only making the entire experience easier but also ridding you of whatever nasty sugar habits.
So, in short, feel free to take a xylitol chewing gum or a candy with sorbitol here and there if you feel like it, just remember not to overdo it.
Sugar Alcohols and Keto
So, should you completely avoid sugar alcohols while on keto? You don’t have to. They are acceptable, even welcome to a certain degree. If taken in large quantities, not only can sugar alcohols completely compromise your diet by maxing out your carb intake, but they may cause certain unwanted health complications. Being moderate is the key.
