Nutritional Content Of Half
There are three types of half-and-half, and the carb count varies from 3.3 grams to 9 grams per 100-gram serving. Low fat half-and-half has around half the fat of regular half-and-half, and all half-and-half has a variety of nutrients:
- Vitamin A
- Phosphorous
- Selenium
Low-fat half-and-half has mostly the same nutrients, but nonfat has different makeup because of the added corn syrup. Of the three, nonfat has the fewest saturated fats, the fewest calories, and the most nutrients. However, nonfat half-and-half has nearly twice as many carbs because of the addition of corn syrup.
Half & Half Alternatives
While you could get away with a bit of half & half once in a while, there are other options out there. Therefore, if you do want to opt for something else, here are the best keto-friendly half & half alternatives.
1. Heavy Cream
The first half & half alternative for keto diets is to just go with full, heavy cream. Heavy cream has a much higher fat percentage than whole milk empty carbs. In fact, heavy cream is almost total fat leaving very little room for carbs. Therefore, next time youre going to get a coffee, go ahead and get the full stuff rather than half & half.
2. Almond Milk
One of your best choices for a more keto-friendly alternative is your plant milk products. Perhaps the best option to substitute is going to be almond milk. Almond milk is an awesome plant-based milk as it offers healthy fats and is low in calories and low in carbs. However, you must get the unsweetened kinds! Buying almond milk that has been flavored will definitely not work with keto.
Still, another option could be to swap out the whole milk in your half and half with almond milk. As most of the carbs come from the whole milk, this will drastically reduce the number of carbs while maintaining the creaminess of half and half.
3. Coconut Milk
4. Bulletproof Coffee
5. Plain Butter
Do Not Use Coffee Creamer!!!!
Dont Let Half & Half Stop Your Ketosis
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Is Half And Half Keto Friendly
Yes, half and half can be safe for a ketogenic diet with the right portion sizes. This dairy product is made from half milk and half cream, so a small serving wont exceed the carb limit for most individuals.
Plain half and half can align with a ketogenic lifestyle, but most flavored coffee creamer varieties in stores are not considered keto. Food manufacturers often include corn syrup and artificial ingredients in them, so the carb counts per serving are much higher.
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In Half And Half: Is It Keto Friendly
Now, who doesnt like a big cup of tea or coffee to get you started for the day?
Its quite common these days to add half and half in your coffee. Isnt it just fantastic?
So, what happens if you decide to jump on the keto bandwagon? Can you still savor that perfect, flavor-enhancing, fantastical deliciousness?
If you, like us, love getting your caffeine kick but are unsure about how half and a half-fit into the keto diet, scroll down for some great advice on what half and half are alternatives and some hot insights.
Is Canned Tuna Ok For Keto
Tuna is naturally low in carbs, making it great for the keto diet, but is also low in fiber. This means it’s less likely to fill you up on its own, so you’ll need to pair it with healthy vegetables. Thankfully, we have 30 irresistible keto tuna meals that will help you benefit from all that tuna has to give.
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What Is The Best Milk On Keto
Tags: Dairy, Full-Fat Dairy, Keto Drinks
Milk on keto is a somewhat controversial topic. To answer the question, is milk keto-friendly? we first have to define what milk were talking about.
In addition to whole milk from cows, goats, and buffalo, and their close cousins heavy cream and half and half, there are numerous beverages made from plant foods that call themselves milk.
Dairy products like milk are extremely popular when consumed on their own and as ingredients in many foods. In 2019 the U.S. per-capita consumption of dairy products was 653 pounds per year. This works out to 1.7 pounds per person every day . So for most people, knowing if and which dairy is keto-friendly is an important step in formulating a keto diet.
In this article, well explore which types of milk are keto-friendly, and which types should be avoided.
How Much Higher Are Carbs In Half And Half Vs Heavy Cream
Since fresh cream has more dairy fat than half and half, it contains fewer carbohydrates per serving but not by much.
On average, heavy whipping cream contains 0.4 grams of carbs per tablespoon , although individual brands vary. If you only enjoy a tablespoon at a time, thats a difference of only 0.2 grams of carbs!
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How Many Carbs Does Half & Half Have
Luckily, half & half dont actually contain a lot of carbs. When looking at the calorie content, you would see that the majority of the calories come from fat, with only 10-20% coming from carbs, depending on the specific mixture.
For example, Land O Lakes Half & Half macro content is broken down as:
- 1 Serving = 20 calories
- Carbs = 0.5
- Protein = 0.5
If you do the math real quick, you see that 2.5 calories are missing. Our math doesnt suck as we are aware. You can thank the FDA for that and its policy on reporting macros.
Anyways, you see, there is only 0.5g of carbs so its not a whole lot. Part of the reason there is so little is that a serving size for half & half is so small due to its intended use. At the same time, however, the percentage of carbohydrates found in half & half is more than your daily percentage of carbohydrates. Therefore, you need to decide if this is a carb you need in your life or if youd instead allot that carb to someone else.
That being said, your average person on keto only allows themselves 50g of carbs a day, so its up to you on how you want to use them. Therefore, you need to take a few variables into account.
If you primarily use half & half to add to your coffee, youre probably going to be ok assuming you only have one per day and you have reasonable control over the other carbohydrates. However, if you are using it for baking or making some sort of beverage, you should probably find an alternative .
Will Half And Half Break My Fast
For some fasting purists, eating or drinking a single calorie technically breaks the fast. However, most people who follow the keto diet believe that consuming strictly fats wont break your fasting state.
This is due to the fact that fats, unlike protein and carbs, does not cause your insulin levels to rise. This means that your body can stay in the fat-burning state of ketosis.
That said, drinking half and half will probably break your fast since it contains carbs in the form of lactose. It is not recommended to mix it with your keto coffee in the morning if you are trying to maintain your fasting state.
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Does Half And Half Have Sugar
Yes, and No.
Every milk, cream, and dairy product will have sugar listed as one of the items on the nutrition facts list. Now, the reason why we said yes and no is because some half and halfs have natural sugars, while others have both natural and added sugar. `
There are large differences between these two types of sugar. While natural sugars are as youd expect naturally occurring, added sugars are processed, and barely have any nutritional value.
And we dont know why, but if you check the net carbs in some of them, youll realize that they are ridiculously high. No one on a keto diet wants to see half of their net carbs used in one cup of coffee.
Is Half And Half Keto
- Pin3
Most people find half and half to be a great creamer for their coffee and tea because its not too high in calories or sugar. Plus, its not as thick as something higher fat like heavy cream may be.
However, like most dairy products on keto its important to double check and make sure your cup of joes is low carb approved. So then we must ask, is half and half keto? Or, is it an overhyped creamer leftover from the US low fat fad.
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Is Half And Half Healthy
Everyone has their definition of what healthy is. According to the Oxford dictionary, health is defined as being free from illness or injury.
Unless you find yourself with a dairy allergy , theres no reason to avoid half and half or other dairy products.
Relative to coffee creamer, half-and-half is a healthier option that does offer certain health benefits.
Half and half is less processed, contains healthier fats, and more than likely doesnt have all the added fillers and sugars.
Half and half is also a good source of calcium, Vitamin A, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B5, Vitamin B12, beta carotene, and many more.
Vitamin A especially is important for vision, the immune system, and reproduction.
I wouldnt recommend you drink half and half as a beverage in itself, especially since it is still relatively high in calories per serving, and that can sabotage a keto dieters weight loss efforts.
But, a splash of half-and-half in your coffee can be a great and healthy alternative offering health benefits relative to other coffee additives.
Does Half & Half Have Carbohydrates
Half & half refer to a milk product that is equal parts cream and whole milk. Its generally used for recipes and foods where you may want something thicker than milk but not full of cream. As mentioned above, one of the most popular uses of half and half is that of a coffee creamer. Using half and half can take the bitterness out of a strong coffee and make it a bit sweeter if thats your thing .
Being that half and half is actually a dairy product, it does, in fact, have carbs in it. These carbs come in the form of lactose, and dairy is actually the only form of carbohydrates that we consume from animals.
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What Can I Put In My Coffee On Keto
You could always learn to drink your coffee black, but if that doesnt appeal to you, you have several options. Many of these are just as easily available as the standard half-and-half.
You can drink your coffee with heavy cream. Heavy cream is high in fat and contains no sugars or carbohydrates, which makes it ideal for the keto diet. Be aware that it is much richer than half-and-half, so you will likely want to use less.
Creamers made with almond milk or coconut milk are also available in most grocery stores. You should be careful when you shop since many commercial coffee creamers are flavored and/or sweetened however, plain almond milk or coconut milk has no carbohydrates.
You can also buy coffee creamers that are made to be keto-friendly. They are usually high in fat and low in sugars and carbohydrates. Some are flavored, and many of them are sweetened with keto-compliant artificial sweeteners.
Is Heavy Cream Keto
Yes, for those of you who tolerate dairy, heavy cream is fantastic on keto. Heavy cream is loaded with fat and low in carbs. Yet it still has a subtly sweet taste, which becomes even more apparent the longer youre on keto.
The ability to freely consume heavy cream is one of the great gifts of keto, and a delicious guilt-free way to boost your keto macro percentages.
One of the most delicious ways to consume heavy cream on keto is to make it part of Dr. Kiltzs keto ice cream.
Scroll to the end for Dr. Kiltzs heavy cream keto ice cream recipe!
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Short Information About The Keto Diet
You probably already know that the keto diet is a high-fat dietary plan which limits your carbohydrate intake . The premise is that you get your daily calorie intake mostly from proteins and fats and avoid the majority of carbs, which are easy to digest . This causes your body to turn to burning fat as its primary energy source.
On the keto diet, you can eat seafood, low-carb and non-starchy veggies, meat, eggs, healthy foods, high-fat dairy , nuts and seeds, berries and more. You can also drink water, bone broth, tea and coffee . Your aim is to consume only 50 grams of carbs per day .
As you can see, your carb intake is quite low. Thats why it is important to choose what foods to leave in you daily meal plan and what foods to exclude. Yes, you can drink coffee, but the majority of the coffee lovers have a question is half and half appropriate for the keto dieters?
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Coffee And Keto Diets
The worst keto offender among all foods is sugar, because sugar is almost 100% carbohydrates. That means using sugar as a sweetener for your coffee is definitely verboten on a ketogenic diet. There are good keto alternatives, notably the natural sweeteners monk fruit, stevia and erythritol, so youre not stuck drinking unsweetened black coffee.
But what about milk?
Milk contains lactose, which is actually considered milk sugar and loaded with carbs. If youre following a very strict keto diet, meaning 20-25 grams of net carbs per day, nearly half-a-days allowable carbs are in a single glass of milk. You probably wont use that much in your coffee, of course. But even if you add milk to your coffee a few times a day, youre consuming a lot of carbohydrates that would be best allocated somewhere else.
What about cream? Isnt it supposed to be good for ketogenic dieters? Yes, because of the fat it contains. But two tablespoons of heavy cream can contain as many as two grams of carbs thats about one-tenth of the maximum number you can consume each day if youre on a strict keto diet. So once again, its easy for heavy coffee drinkers who add cream to use up their daily allowance of carbohydrates.
The bottom line: milk and cream are only acceptable on keto if you use them sparingly. Sparingly may not help the folks who mainline coffee throughout the day, or those who would rather spend their very limited carbohydrate budget somewhere else.
Enter keto coffee.
Can You Have Coffee With Half And Half On A Keto Diet
After starting your keto diet, you may be asking, what can I put in my coffee on keto?
Half and half, which is a mix of heavy whipping cream and whole milk, is perfectly acceptable to use in your coffee while on a keto diet.
Both are relatively low in carbohydrates, which makes half and half on keto perfectly acceptable.
However, there are fat-free varieties of half and half that combine skim milk with corn syrup instead of cream.
This fat-free mixture results in a half and half product that is generally higher in carbohydrates, which may not be ideal on a keto diet as the full-fat variety.
Can You Have Half And Half On Keto
Yes plain half and half without additives contains just 0.6 grams of carbs per tablespoon, which can easily be worked into a standard ketogenic diet of up to 50 grams of carbs per day.
If you’re particularly close to your carb limit for the day, try one of the keto-friendly creamer alternatives below, several of which contain zero grams of net carbs per serving.
What Happens If I Use Half And Half On The Keto Diet
If you decide to use half and half on the keto diet, there is a chance that you could end up knocking your body out of ketosis. Remember that your body is going to prefer to use carbohydrates if they are available to you. If you consume half-and-half, you give your body carbohydrates. Therefore, your body is going to burn carbohydrates instead of fat. That means your body is no longer in a state of ketosis.
You can check and see if your body is still in ketosis relatively easily. The first thing you should do is see what your breath smells like. When you are in ketosis, your breath should have a fruity smell to it. That is because your body is producing ketones, which smell like fruit. You can also get some ketone test strips to test your urine. If you are in ketosis, ketones should be showing up in your urine. These test strips usually change color when they are positive.
Most importantly, if your body is no longer in ketosis, you may not lose weight as quickly as you would like. That is because your body is no longer burning fat. If you want to keep your body in a state of ketosis and meet your weight loss goals, you should try to stay away from half and half on the keto diet.