Are Carrots Keto? – How make Carrots on a Keto diet?

Generally, root vegetables aren’t allowed on a keto diet because they are high in carbs. Carrot also roots vegetable. 

On the other hand, carrots are tasty, crunchy, and highly nutritious. Carrots are a good source of beta carotene, vitamin K1, potassium, and lots of antioxidants. [1]

Does carrot nutrition fit with a keto diet?

Carrots contain mostly water. It contains more than 80% of water. [2][3]. Its regular portion is hard to fit into the keto diet but you can reduce its portion size.

It contains less than 1g fat and protein. [4]

According to the USDA Food Composition Database, 100g carrots contain – 

• Water – 88.3g
• Total carbs – 9.5g
• Fiber – 2.8g
• Net carbs – 6.7g
• Calories – 41 kcal
• Protein – 0.9g
• Fat – 0.2g
• Sugar – 4.7g
• Sucrose – 3.5g

Vitamin and minerals

Vitamins are also a good source of vitamins and minerals such as – 

• Vitamin A – it contains beta carotene, which our body changes into vitamin A. it contains 334% of the daily value for vitamin A. [5][6]
• Biotin – known as vitamin H. plays an essential role in protein metabolism. [7]
• Vitamin K – it contains 16%(13.2mcg) of the Daily Value for Vitamin K. [5][6]

Other vitamins and minerals in a moderate amount such as calcium, magnesium, potassium, zinc, manganese, vitamin B6, thiamin, vitamin E, etc. [5][6]

It also contains other Antioxidants like [7][8][9] – 

• Alpha-carotene
• Lutein 
• Lycopene
• Beta carotene
• Polyacetylenes
• Anthocyanins

Are carrots keto-friendly?

Yes, you can have carrots in a keto diet, but you cannot have them on a regular portion.

You can add carrots on a High protein keto diet and cyclic keto diet. keto dieters should avoid them if they are following the Standard keto diet.

Carrots are a little bit higher in carbs than other vegetables. But you should know a few things before. 

All carbs in the ketogenic diet should come from healthy sources.

• Carbs in carrots – carrots are mainly made of carbs and water. 100g Carrots contain 41 calories and almost 90% of calories come from carbs and the rest from protein and fat. In the keto diet, 90% of the calories come from fat and less than 5% from carbs, which is the exact opposite of carrots.
• Glycemic Index (GI) – GI means the speed of an increase in blood sugar level by eating a certain food. More is the GI more spikes in blood sugar level. GI of the carrots is 71, which is high. 100g carrots contain 9.5g total carbs which makes its glycemic load is  6.7 which is allowed on a keto diet. 

Carbs in carrots are higher than other veggies and the GI of the carrots is also high.

But, carrots are very healthy and good for fighting disease and eye health.

So, the bottom line is you can have carrots in a keto diet in moderation. Limit yourself below 100g per day as a salad.

How many carrots on a keto diet?

You should consume less than 100g carrots per day or less than 30g per meal on a keto diet.

Less than 100g carrots are good for your health. It will provide you all the necessary vitamins and minerals and also will keep you in ketosis.

How to eat carrots on a keto diet?

You should eat less than 100g carrots per day or less than 30g carrots per meal that would contain 2g net carbs.

Eat carrots in raw form as salad, when you cook the food or extract juice, the GI of the food increases and which is obviously bad for ketosis.

Combine carrots with other low carbs with low GI veggies in the salad to minimize the overall blood sugar effect.

Carrots also help with weight loss, if you want to lose weight, then go for it in moderation amount, you are on keto keep in mind that too.

Ultimate Keto Cook Book

Try this Keto Cook Book. If you are not sure how to cook carrot on keto.

How to make room for more carrots on a keto diet?

Some people are crazy about carrots if you are one of them, then we can help. If you want to eat more carrots then sure you can do that.

Keep in mind on a keto diet 70% of calories come from fat and less than 10% from carbs.

If you eat 200g carrots, it will provide you 60 calories for carbs to compensate for it, you need to eat 400 calories from fat or 5 tbsp of peanut butter that is a lot of calories.

If you are on a ketogenic diet to lose weight then it’s totally not worth it. Try to eat less than 20-30g carrots per meal in raw form as a salad.

Forms of carrots you should avoid on a keto diet

There are two for of carrots should definitely avoid on keto – 

• Cooked carrots – You should avoid cooked carrots on a keto diet. As you cook the food its glycemic index increase means more spikes in blood sugar level that is bad for your ketosis. If you really want to enjoy carrots on keto eat raw as a salad with other veggies.
• Carrot juice – can also give more spike in blood sugar levels. When you eat whole raw carrots then it also contains fiber part. Fiber helps to slow down the absorption process of the nutrients into the bloodstream, which can prevent a spike in blood sugar levels. Carrot juice lots its fiber part which definitely not good for ketosis.

Health benefits of carrots

There are a number of health benefits of carrots such as –

• Eye health – Lower level of vitamin A can cause night blindness [10]. Carotenoids can also help with age-related macular degeneration. [11][12]
• Weight loss – the carrot is a low-calorie food. It can decrease caloric intake and increase fullness. [13]
• Reduce cancer risk – Carotenoids can help to decrease the risk of cancers such as colon, prostate, breast, and stomach. [14][15][16][17]
• Bone health – Carrots contain vitamin K, calcium, and phosphorus, which are very beneficial to bone health.
• Increase immunity – it contains vitamin C. it helps with collagen, which is essential in wound healing [18]. Vitamin C also helps with the immune system. [19][20][21]

Conclusion 

Carrot is a very healthy food. It contains lots of vitamins and minerals. It particularly high in vitamin A, which is essential for eye health.

Carotenoids present in carrots also help with weight loss, reduce cancer risk, good for bone health, and increase immunity.

Carrots are a little bit higher in carbs. 100g carrots contain 6.7g net carbs and have 71 Glycemic Index which is high. So always take cahoots in moderation.

100g per day or 20-30g carrots per meal is enough. Always take carrots in raw form as a salad. Cooked carrots or carrot juice both are not good for your ketosis.

Most frequently asked question

Source 

USDA  “https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/170393/nutrients” 

SELF Nutrition “https://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/vegetables-and-vegetable-products/2383/2”