Can You Drink Alcohol On Keto?

🍸The topic of whether alcohol is keto-friendly comes up fairly regularly in the Facebook group - we're Brits, after all - and so I decided to address it in a blog post…

🍹Alcohol is nuanced - it’s not a blanket YES or NO, but a case of making an educated decision about whether, when, and what to drink, based on your own health goals…

🥂In terms of carbs, depending on your day's total carb count, one glass of wine or champagne shouldn't kick you out of ketosis. And if “staying in ketosis” were your only goal, then you’d be good to go…

🧩However, the majority of people in my group either already know or are starting to realise that “not breaking ketosis” is only one part of the jigsaw puzzle to regaining their health…

Other than carbs, what else matters?

🍺No matter how much propaganda is pushed on us about alcohol having “health benefits” it is terrible for physical and mental health - it’s not only a “depressant” but a literal poison. That dizzy-headed drunk feeling you get is you being poisoned.

🍷Any purported “health benefits” - such as the alleged benefits to longevity from resveratrol found in miniscule amounts in red wine - are greatly outweighed by the damage done by the sheer volume of alcohol you would need to drink to get enough resveratrol to reap any benefits.

☠️If you replace the question “Can I drink alcohol?” with “Can I drink poison?” or “What type of alcohol/poison is best?” or “How much alcohol/poison can I have?” you’ll, hopefully, start to realise that it’s a hard question to answer…

🤢It's similar to another common question I get about whether keto products that contain seed oils or sweeteners are "allowed". Of course they have a detrimental effect because they consist of stuff that works against health… Everything is "allowed" - the question is, how sick are you OK with being? And because the vast majority of my group members are not only trying to lose weight but also trying to feel better, I have decided to place a blanket ban in my group on recommending alcohol, and diet mixers...

What about diet mixers?

🥤Low-calorie tonic water and other diet drinks contain artificial sweeteners known to not only wreck the gut, but to create “cognitive deficits” - what does that mean? It means memory and learning problems, such as brain fog, an inability to think straight, and to take in new information and remember it…

🍻It could be argued that there are social benefits to drinking alcohol - and that’s something that you need to weigh up for yourself. But let’s be real: if any member of your social group doesn’t care about your health challenges and won’t accept your efforts to improve, are they the kind of person you want influencing your lifestyle choices?

💪🏻So the question with anything that's low-carb but high toxicity isn't whether it'll knock you out of ketosis, but whether it'll help you on your route to better health. Ask yourself where you are with your health goals and whether alcohol supports that and is worth it. And if you’re metabolically healthy and your goal is simply to lose that last few pounds, then a small amount of alcohol very occasionally, while not ideal, shouldn’t hinder that.

🤔To summarise: while it may seem like a good idea to have “just one” or to drink low-sugar alcohol and diet mixers while following keto, if you’re trying to fix your health - whether that’s physical or mental - it’s very much working against your otherwise-good efforts. Alcohol and diet mixers will set you back, whereas refraining will help keep you on track to healing.

🔍What to drink instead

At home, if you’re used to drinking a glass of wine with dinner, or having a beer later on, you need to replace it with something that feels like a treat rather than a glass of misery…

🥒I strongly recommend getting yourself a really fancy glass (or tankard!) and filling it with sparkling water and a squeeze of lemon or lime, or a couple of slices of cucumber, or a strawberry or raspberry...

☕️In the pub, get yourself a fancy coffee or an unusual tea (decaf or herbal after noon so you don’t wreck your sleep)…

🍋...or a sparkling water with a slice of lemon - ask for it in a fancy gin glass with ice and a straw so that you don’t feel deprived and also so that people don’t start quizzing you about your choice!

I do hope that’s useful for you and helps you to make an informed decision about whether alcohol is a part of your health journey.

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🙋🏻‍♀️I’m Lisa, the creator of this website and associated Facebook group Keto Beginners UK.💛

I help Brits of all ages, backgrounds, and sizes, just like you to navigate the ketogenic way of eating for weight loss and better overall health.

I’ve put together a wealth of information for you to get to grips with it all.

👩🏻‍💻On this website you’ll find more useful blog posts, a suggested 7-day meal plan & grocery list, and a health assessment form (all free), plus info about my keto guide & journal for beginners, and my cookbook.

💌If you’re not much into reading and researching for yourself and just need some 1:1 help to save you the time, trouble, and guesswork of figuring it all out, reach out to me through my contact form on this page, and we’ll talk about how we can fast-track your health journey.