Are Tomatoes Keto-friendly? Tomatoes Variety may surprise You

Everyone treats tomatoes as a vegetable, but it is technically a fruit cause of fructose.

So may this question arise in your mind many times that tomatoes are keto-friendly or not? Or we can eat tomatoes on a keto diet or not? or what is keto tomato?

Tomato nutrition

Tomato contains 95% of water by its water. This is why raw tomatoes are low in calories, but low in carbs as well. 

According to the USDA Food Composition Databases, 100g Raw Tomato can provide –

• Water – 94g
• Total Carbs – 3.9g
• Fiber – 1.2
• Net carbs – 2.7g
• Total sugars –  2.6g
• Protein – 0.88g
• Fat – 0.20g

Vitamins and minerals

Tomatoes are rich in antioxidants. That can help to prevent many diseases and also act as anti-aging.

• Vitamin A – 17% of the RDI value
• Vitamin C – 21% of the RDI value   
•  Vitamin E – 3% of the RDI value
• Vitamin K – 10% of the RDI value
• Vitamin B6 – 4% of the RDI value
• Folate – 4% of the RDI value
• Potassium – 7% of the RDI value
• Manganese – 6% of the RDI value

How many net carbs in tomatoes?   

Net carbs in tomato depend on what kind of tomato you are eating. Some tomato contains less than 3g net carbs. 

However, some tomatoes such as Roma tomatoes contain 7g net carbs per 100g.

Tomatoes aren’t high in fibers so generally total carbs are also net carbs. They contain 1-2g fiber per 100g.

Can you eat tomatoes on a keto diet?

the simple question is – Can you eat on a keto diet? and the simple answer is –

Definitely Yes, tomatoes are keto-friendly (ketogenic), According to USDA Food Composition Databases, a standard tomato contains 4 g carbohydrates per 100 g [1]. There is only 3-4 medium-size tomato per 100 g. So, you should eat only 3-4 tomatoes in a keto diet.

But you should remember that carbs count depends on the tomato you are eating.

A ketogenic diet is a carbs restricted diet, it doesn’t mean that the ketogenic diet is zero carbs diet. 

You should consider tomatoes in your keto diet because tomatoes contain low sugar, more fiber, and more than that it contains nutrients that you may be lacking on a keto diet.

You can eat tomatoes with some coconut oil, peppers, and salt.

What is the best variety of tomatoes to eat on keto?

There are many varieties of tomatoes. But you need to choose a low-carb variety of tomato for the keto diet.

1. Cherry tomato

Cherry tomatoes contain carbs and nutrition similar to standard tomatoes. So, you can eat cherry tomatoes on a keto diet.

2. Grape tomato

Grape tomato contains lower water content and more fructose. It contains 5 g net carbohydrates [2]. You can eat grape tomatoes as long as you are not crossing daily carb intake in your standard keto diet.

3. Kumato Tomato

It contains 4g of carbs per 100 g so it can be a good option for a keto diet.

4. Roma tomato

you can Roma tomatoes on a ketogenic diet if you are eating sparingly. One thick slice of it contains almost 1 g carbs. One serving of Roma tomatoes contains 7g carbs. Roma tomatoes are not a keto-friendly tomato.

5. Campari Tomatoes

it contains 2.7 g of net carbs count per 100 g (2 tomatoes) so keep counting if you are eating when you are on the keto diet. Campari tomato contains carbs similar to a standard tomato.

6. Beefsteak Tomatoes

you should avoid Beefsteak Tomatoes during a keto diet. One medium-size tomato can contain 4 g net carbs. Beefsteak tomato contains carbs similar to Roma tomato. Avoid Beefsteak and Tomato in a keto diet.

How to eat tomatoes in a keto diet?

You can add tomato to your diet in many ways. Just remember, try to eat tomato raw, when water is extracted from tomatoes they become high in carbs.

• Low carbs roasted tomato
• Salad  and slices
• Tomato Sauce
• Tomato juice
• Tomato Soup

Source click here

How many tomatoes to eat on a keto diet?

There are 3-4 medium-sized tomatoes per 100g. You cannot completely mess with ketosis if you eat 2-3 tomatoes per day. You need to eat 5-6 tomatoes to upset your ketosis.

Tomato product you should avoid on a keto diet

You should avoid all forms of tomato that contain very low water content. Water content low means high in carbs, which is restricted.

1. Tomato powder

You should not eat tomato powder in a keto diet. Tomato powder contains 75% carbs. According to US Food Composition Database tomatoes, powder contains 74.6 g carbs and a total of 13 g protein. 

If you eat too much powder, your body will be no longer in ketosis. Or you can spoil your keto diet completely.

2. Sun-dried tomato

Sun-dried tomato contains very low or no water content. Due to this only carbs, fiber and protein content.

Sun-dried tomato contains 213 calories and these calories come from 14.1 g protein, 12.3 g fiber, and 56 g carbohydrates. [3]

So if you are eating sun-dried tomatoes in the keto diet, then keep counting on how much you have eaten.

Benefits of Tomatoes on keto  

Tomatoes have a number of health benefits because it is the major source of antioxidants lycopene and also rich in vitamin A, C, K, etc.

1. Heart health

Tomatoes have several health benefits. They are rich in vitamins A, K, C, and potassium.

Tomatoes are good for your heart health. 

A study in men linked low blood levels of lycopene to increased heart attacks and strokes. [4]

Lycopene serum can decrease the risk of stroke and tomato are the best source of lycopene.[5] 

2. Skin protection

Tomato is also very beneficial for skin health.

Tomato is rich in lycopene, vitamin A and C which can protect your skin from sunburn. [6]

3. Protection against  cancer

In several studies shows that high lycopene can protect from several cancers such as prostate cancer, breast cancer, stomach cancer, etc. [7]

Our Recommendation for you 

You should make everything at home. If you don’t know how to make tomato centric delicious dishes at home. You can buy tomato recipes from the online store. It would be cheaper than buying tomatoes soup, sauce, etc.

Click here for Tomato recipes for keto

Conclusion

You can eat tomatoes in the ketogenic diet but you should always count how much you have eaten. Generally, tomato contains 4 to 7 g of carbs and You can easily pass the maximum limit. 

But you should quit tomato in keto-diet because it contains nutrients that might be difficult to find while following a ketogenic diet.

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