1. Dead wrong about increasing fiber if constipated – which bulks up stools and makes it worse. Read Fiber Menace.

   • What do you suggest for constipation then?

     • I suggest reading the book Fiber Menace but in the mean time if a person has switched to a ketogenic diet and become constipsted it is likely because they were fiber dependent due to low potassium and sodium.

       The solution therefore would be to increase sodium and potassium. The essiest way to increase sodium is to drink bouillon or bone broth. I purchased chicken snd beef bouillon in individual packets which provide approximately 900 mg of sodium per packet. I found that two per day in addition to salting my food to taste really helped. Potassium is a little more difficult but there are electrolyte drinks or use salt free replacement ‘salt’ which is potassium.

       There are more reasons to have constipation and solutions which the book covers. It is not an overnight fix as many believe.

       • If there is not so much fiber going in, then there’s not much to come out. As long as you are feeling ok, and bowel movements, when they do occur are relatively easy and painless, then there’s nothing to worry about. I went from a once a day kind of person, to 2 – 3 times week on keto. Saving money on toilet paper and feeling fine. Its a new kind of normal. I assume higher fat levels and plenty of water should keep things running smoothly.

2. Dead wrong about increasing fiber if constipated – which bulks up stools and makes it worse. Read Fiber Menace.

3. Dizziness is a sure sign of low BP if on a ketogenic diet and taking high blood pressure meds but BP drops due to low carb. See you doctor before going on a ketogenic diet and monitor BP..

   • Excellent. That’s for sure. It happened to me big time. My BP dropped so low trying KETO previously I had to stop taking my meds as I had gone into Low BP.

   • Dizziness can be caused by screwed up electrolytes. I needed an electrolyte supplement. I use Dr. Berg’s and Black Cherry ZipFizz, but there are others out there.

     • Usually get muscle cramps firs if electrolytes are lowt. Bone broth or bouillon cubes as Dr. Phinney says as well. Never tried ZipFizz. No sodium, but adds potassium and magnesium. I wouldn’t want the 100 mg of caffeine though.

4. Some of these suggestions like drinking broth, apple cider or adding lemon to water, etc I would think would knock you off the fast mode and kick the food metabolism processes into action since they have calories and contain substances that body must processmetabolize, same as when eating a dehydrated apple, lemon, coffee bean etc

   • Gin Stephens, a former teacher of gifted students, wrote “Delay Don’t Deny” and in her book and her Facebook groups she recommends a “Clean fast”, meaning plain water and/or black coffee or plain tea, and nothing else, except perhaps a little salt when indicated. The before and after photos in her FB groups are jawdropping. There is no diet dogma allowed in those groups – it is a come one, come all approach to intermittent fasting.

   • Mr. Hand, I disagree with some of your assumptions. While food or food products like dehydrated apples, broths, or lemon can cause the food metabolism processes to kick-in, ingesting such non-food products as black coffee and apple cider vinegar do not interfere with the intermittent fasting benefits. On the contrary, they can enhance the benefits of fasting. The key is that fasting causes AMP-activated kinase (“AMPK”), and such substances as coffee and apple cider vinegar promote AMPK activation. See this study, for example, on the benefits of apple cider vinegar to AMPK activation: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4039279/. And here’s study showing the benefits of black coffee on AMPK activation: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4632959/. Many in the scientific community who are researching the benefits of fasting and ingesting such common and relatively cheap substances such as coffee and apple cider vinegar believe that those practices can extend lifespans because of the AMPK activiation effect. The relatively cheap prescription drug Metformin also enhances AMPK activation. See this study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC209533/.

5. I am surprised that stevia is allowed in your coffee when fasting. I thought all sweeteners were discouraged whether fasting or eating…?

   • Contrary to what is claimed in the article above most artificial sweeteners have zero effect on insulin response . The few that do are the sugar alcohol based sweeteners such as Maltitol which will give an insulin response almost as high as real sugar

     • I also found the information on sweeteners to be confusing.

6. Hi All! Can anyone share the serving sizes that they’re referring to – please? Thanks much.

7. I have to say after reading the list of drinks that are allowed during a fast; I agree with the majority of them. However, broths of any kind should not be consumed during a fast as it will need to be “broken” down within the body which will trigger an insulin reaction and will break a fast. Coffee, tea, water, and apple cider vinegar do not go through this same process and therefore do not disrupt the fasting period

8. That was confusing! No artificial sweeteners allowed, but Stevia is ok? Stevia is an artificial sweetener. So is it allowed or not? Maybe its not artificial and so its ok? And what about monk fruit and erythritol? I was also confused about almond milk, unsweetened almond milk is one of the best milks for a keto diet because its low carb (low sugar) but this article says its high in sugar? Not that I would drink it while fasting, but it was still confusing. Why do diet sodas break a fast if there are no calories? A little more information about this is needed I think.

   • Stevia is a natural sweetener not artificial, it’s sugar substitute that does not have any impact on your blood sugar and is a zero on the glycemic index.

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