What are the best and the worst alcoholic drinks on a keto diet?
First, the obvious: alcohol doesn't help weight loss. The more alcohol you drink, the harder it is to lose weight, since the body tends to burn alcohol before anything else. Drinking alcohol can also make you want to eat more.
There's a huge difference between different kinds of drinks when it comes to how many carbs they contain. Some are okay, yet others are disasters.
The short version: wine is much lower in carbs than beer, so most people on keto choose wine.
Pure spirits like whiskey and vodka contain zero carbs. Watch out for sweet mixed drinks - they may have massive amounts of sugar.
For more detail, check out the visual guide below. The lower-carb (keto-friendly) options are to the left.
Disclaimer: Consumption of alcoholic beverages impairs your ability to drive a car or operate machinery, and may cause health problems if consumed in excess. Note that on a keto diet you might need significantly less alcohol to get intoxicated. Women should not drink alcoholic beverages during pregnancy.
Wine and beer
The numbers represent grams of carbs in a typical serving - for example, one glass of wine or one draft beer. Note that sweet brands of wine or sparkling wine may contain more carbs, while other types may contain a bit less.
Wine
Even on a keto diet (below 20 grams per day) you can probably have a glass of wine fairly regularly. And on a moderate low carb diet, wine is not a problem.
Dry wines usually contain less than 0.5 grams of sugar per glass. Fermentation byproducts in wine, like glycerol, should have a minimal effect on blood sugar or insulin levels. Using 2 grams as an estimate of carbs per glass of dry wine is conservative. Fortunately, all dry wines fit well within a keto diet.
Sweet dessert wines, however, contain a lot more sugar.
Beer
Beer is a problem on keto. There's a reason people talk about "beer bellies." Beer is made from grains, which provide a lot of rapidly digestible carbs. It's even been called "liquid bread." For this reason, most beers are bad for weight control and should be avoided on keto.
Note that the amount of carbs in beer varies depending on the brand. There are a few possible low-carb options for keto. Check out our keto beer guide below for details.
Spirits
The numbers represent grams of carbs per drink, or the amount you'll get if you order one in a bar.
Pure spirits like whiskey, brandy, cognac, vodka, gin, and tequila contain zero carbs and are all fine on keto.
When it comes to drinks, it's pretty straightforward: pure spirits like whiskey, brandy, cognac, vodka, gin, and tequila contain zero carbs and are all fine on keto.Avoid sugar-sweetened drinks. Don't add juice, soft drinks, or sweet flavorings to spirits. Adding tonic to zero-carb gin boosts its carb count to 16 grams per serving! Have vodka, soda water and a twist of lime instead for a refreshing carb-free drink.
The worst option of all is to mix alcohol with soda or juice. This is a sugar bomb.
Wine coolers / alcopops
The numbers represent grams of carbs (sugar) per bottle.
So, what about wine coolers or "alcopops"? They're just like regular soda with added alcohol, and should be avoided.
Keto-friendly beers
The numbers above are the grams of carbs in one 12 oz. bottle of beer (355 ml).
Although the carb counts vary among different brands, most are too high for a keto diet. Even on a more liberal low-carb diet it might be wise to keep beer drinking as an occasional thing.
The exception is ultra-lite American beers, which contain very few carbs. So if you like them, you're in luck. Check out the brands to the left in the graphic above.
Top 5 keto alcoholic drinks
On a keto diet, you can still enjoy a delicious drink or two on special occasions. Even though many alcoholic drinks contain a lot of sugar, there are still some great keto options, with little or no sugar or carbs.
Here's our list of the top 5 keto alcoholic drinks:
Return to the top of the keto alcohol guideA word of caution
When eating a keto diet, some people get intoxicated from significantly less alcohol. So be careful the first time you drink alcohol on keto. You may only need half as many drinks as usual to enjoy yourself. So keto may save you money at the bar.
The reasons for this common experience aren't fully known. Possibly the liver is busy producing ketones or glucose, and thus has less capacity to burn alcohol.
This is great if you're looking to maximize alcohol's intoxicating impact. On the other hand, your hangover could be worse.
Be very careful doing anything where impairment could increase the risk of accidents or injury. Never drink and drive.
Furthermore, if you're using a keto diet to treat metabolic syndrome and fatty liver disease, be aware that alcohol can have a negative effect on liver health. Excessive alcohol acts as a liver toxin.
Finally, it appears that alcohol intake might somewhat reduce ketone production, even in the absence of sugar or carbs.
Here's an in-depth article with more details on the above, and other surprising things about alcohol on a keto diet:
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