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sugar alcohols pass through the gastrointestinal tract unabsorbed, there is the potential for fermentation by bacteria and subsequent bloating, abdominal pain, flatulence, or diarrhea. Thus, as a rule we don?t advocate consuming a lot use sugar alcohols. But if you do, we prefer xylitol.

Saccharin (sold as Sweet?N Low in pink packets), aspartame (sold as Equal and NutraSweet in blue packets), and sucralose (sold as Splenda in yellow packets) are many times sweeter than sugar. They can be used in small amounts, and

Berries (e.g., rasp-, straw-, blue-, etc), tomatoes, olives and avocados are relatively low in carbohydrate and packed with nutrients. A daily total of up to 100 grams (3.5

Whole eggs contain about half a gram of carbohydrate each and can be used frequently. You can fry, poach, scramble, or boil eggs or make an omelet.

calling them ?carbage?. However, here?s where you

appropriate quantity and quality of fats, minerals, and micronutrients needed to ensure a palatable and sustainable low carbohydrate life-style. So what about mindset? If you don?t believe that a low carb lifestyle is safe or sustainable, it probably won?t be. However

Can athletes actually maintain a diet high in fat and low in carbohydrate for extended periods of time? The answer is an emphatic YES! But the chances

Exercise.

little over half of the amino acids in protein are converted to glucose in the body, producing an anti-ketogenic effect. This is not a trivial point for athletes since high protein diets and the use of protein shakes before and after workouts are commonly encouraged.

Carbohydrate.

Protein. Another important nutritional factor that impacts

some individuals need to stay under 30 grams whereas others can consume as much as 100 grams per day of total carbs and still remain in nutritional ketosis. It is this variability that argues in favor of testing your blood ketones daily for the first few months of a low carbohydrate diet until you know how to keep

by insulin, so ketone levels are exquisitely sensitive to carbohydrate ingestion.

Is this worth paying $20 for the test meter, $2 per test, and pricking your fingertip once per day for a month or two? Based upon our experience working with many people, we think that the answer is ?yes?.

home blood testing devices that assess BOHB in blood obtained from a finger stick. For example, Precision Xtra® (Abbott Diabetes Care, Inc) and Nova Max® Plus (Nova Biomedical) are reasonably priced devices (~$20) available ?over-the-counter? that can test for levels of BOHB and glucose in a matter of seconds. However, reagent strips for BOHB are relatively expensive (~$3 to 5 per strip) if purchased at retail drug stores. On eBay, however, it is possible to buy these same blood ketone strips for $1-2 each.

Blood tests for ketones are more definitive since they measure the concentration of BOHB, AcAc, or both, where it is most important ? directly in your circulation. This can be done by having your blood drawn (usually requiring a doctor?s

As a result, urine ketones may decrease even as blood values stay in the desirable range. Therefore, although this method is practical and relatively inexpensive, its results should be viewed with a considerable degree of caution.

Ketones have typically been measured in urine, blood, or breath; and each has its advantages and disadvantages.

There do not appear to be any benefits to pushing blood ketones higher than 3 millimolar, which is about as high as most people get

should aim for blood ketone levels between 0.5 and 3.0 millimolar.