7 Best Keto Diet Friendly Drinks
7 Best Keto Diet Friendly Drinks
This is hands down the best drink for you — keto or not. Keep a water bottle near you at all times and sip throughout the day to stay ahead of your hydration.
This is a great way to mix up your usual water — just avoid tonic, which looks like clear, plain bubbled water, but actually contains a ton of sugar. Adding a squeeze of lemon adds nearly ½ gram (g) of carbohydrates, notes the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Like with tea, it’s what you add to your brew that matters most. Drinking it black is completely calorie free, but many keto dieters will appreciate the added fat that heavy cream provides, says Scott Keatley, RDN, of Keatley Medical Nutrition Therapy in New York City. For adults, up to 400 milligrams (mg) per day of caffeine is considered safe, according to the Mayo Clinic. For reference, 1 cup — 8 fluid ounces (oz) — of coffee contains about 92 mg, per the USDA, while a tall coffee at Starbucks contains 245 mg according to the company website.
There’s something uniquely warming and comforting about sipping a steaming cup of bone broth. One brand notes this liquid offers 0 carbs and 1 cup contains less than 50 calories while adding 9 g of protein. Traditional broth is a stellar option, too, though it has less protein. One cup contains 13 calories and 2.5 g of protein, according to the USDA.
Almond, coconut, and cashew milks make for great choices if you want to mix things up, as they contain 1 g (or less) of carbs per cup. Just be sure to always read the nutrition label closely and choose unsweetened varieties. These are often fortified with vitamins and minerals, so they’re a good way to get in calcium and vitamin D.
This isn’t the best pick — nor should it be your go-to sip. But if you’re really craving something sweet and soda-like, consider kombucha, a gut-friendly fermented tea. Catch is, all kombuchas are made with sugar, which is needed for the fermentation process. “You’ll have to sacrifice carbs in order to drink kombucha,” says Whitmire. Read the label — the amount of sugar added is all over the map. You can find some brands and flavors that have about 3 g of carbs per ½ cup. (That’s one-quarter of the bottle, so measure it out.)