What are Some Low-Carb Foods You Should Avoid?

While you want to keep your carbs as low as possible on keto, since you are only 
allotted 20 net carbs a day, there are some foods with zero or extremely low carbs that 
are still not good for you to consume. Try to stay away from these “no carb” or “low 
carb” foods and additives.

Margarine

In terms of fats that you can have, margarine is among the worst ones to use when you 
are on a keto diet or any other diet. Margarine does have nearly zero carbs at 0.1 grams 
of carbohydrates per tablespoon. However, butter also has zero carbs, so there is no 
reason you shouldn’t go for the real thing. Margarine is made from vegetable oil, which 
is one of the few oils you want to avoid on the ketogenic diet. A better option is to just 
get the regular, real butter, getting those fats without the added trans fats. Grass-fed 
butter is ideal, but when the choice is because non grass-fed butter and margarine, 
always go for the butter.

Liquor

It can be tempting to have liquor on a regular basis since clear liquors have little to no 
carbohydrates, but they can stall your weight loss and even knock you out of ketosis. 
The reason they lead to a stall is because your body needs to burn off all the alcohol 
before it will burn fat. In a typical day, the alcohol is burned instead of any fat, so you 
won’t lose anything during those days. Drinking occasionally won’t do much harm, but 
daily drinking can lead to no weight loss and might eventually knock you out of ketosis.

Artificial Sweeteners

These sweeteners might have zero carbs, but they are still not good for you. Artificial 
sweeteners aren’t natural, and often lead to sugar cravings. The lack of carbs isn’t 
always worth being able to make faux sweets with them, since you might then crave the 
real thing. It is better to stick to the most natural sweeteners you can that don’t have 
carbs, like Stevia. 

High Amounts of Protein

When you want something with high fat and no carbs, meat is usually the best option. 
However, meat, poultry, and seafood also have a lot of protein. On a keto diet, your 
protein should be moderate, so try to break up your meals with more veggies, nuts, and 
even some berries for sweetness. Too much meat can knock your protein up a little too 
high.

