9 Reasons Why You Might Be Experiencing Keto Bloating

Keto diets are incredibly popular. These diets involve consuming a high amount of fat, a low amount of carbohydrates, and a normal amount of protein are great for losing weight and improving your health.

However, it is normal to experience some unpleasant side effects along the way.

One of the biggest side effects of following a keto diet is bloating. At some point in your keto journey, you will experience keto bloating, it is simply a rite of passage.

However, as this side effect only happens from time to time, you might be wondering what is causing it. 

In this guide, we’re taking a look at 9 of the main reasons why you might be experiencing keto bloating.

So, if you are interested in finding out more about what could be causing your bloating, you are in the right place. 

Read on to find out more! 

The Main Reasons For Keto Bloating

1. You Are New To The Diet

The most common reason why people experience keto bloating is that they are new to following the keto diet.

The keto diet can take some getting used to, and because it is so different from a regular diet, it will take time for your body to adjust. 

So, during the first few weeks of your keto diet, it is completely normal to experience some bloating.

In order for your body to start burning fat, it will need to enter ketosis, and this initial period without carbohydrates can be very difficult.

That is why you might experience keto bloating. 

However, if this is the reason for your keto bloating, you need to stick with the diet and eventually, it will resolve itself. 

Ways To Deal With It

• Increase your fat intake
• Keep your carb intake below 20 grams every day
• Supplement your diet with minerals (including sodium, potassium, and magnesium)

2. You Are Eating Too Much Artificial Sweetener

Another reason why you might experience keto bloating is if you are consuming too much artificial sweetener.

There are artificial sweeteners in a lot of foods, and if you consume too much they can cause unpleasant side effects in your body. Especially if you are following a keto diet. 

The vast majority of keto-friendly sweet treats will use sweeteners rather than sugar. In moderation, this is fine.

But if you have a sweet tooth, you might find yourself consuming a large amount of keto-friendly sweet foods. This means you will consume a large amount of sweetener. 

Sweeteners are created using sugar alcohols, and when consumed in large amounts, they can all cause bloating. So this could be the reason why you are experiencing keto bloating. 

Ways To Deal With It

• Reduce the number of sweet treats you consume
• Avoid sugar alcohols in keto-friendly treats

3. You Are Consuming Too Many Carbs

A keto-friendly diet is designed to be low in carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are one of many different foods that can cause bloating, which is why some people are truly baffled by keto bloating.

But, as you will need to consume some carbs as part of your diet, this is what can cause the bloating, 

When you are following a keto diet, it is very important that you tightly manage how many carbohydrates you consume.

Consuming too many carbohydrates can easily throw your body out of ketosis, and this will impact the effectiveness of the diet.

That is why consuming too many carbohydrates is a common cause of keto bloat. 

In order for a keto diet to be successful, you need to follow it very tightly. Eating too many carbohydrates will throw the diet out of whack, and this can cause bloating. 

Ways To Deal With It

• Ensure you aren’t consuming any hidden carbohydrates
• Be very strict when creating your diet plan
• Ensure that you stick within the recommended amount of carbohydrates

4. You Aren’t Eating Enough Fiber

In contrast to eating too many carbohydrates, not eating enough fiber can also cause keto bloating.

Fiber plays a huge role in regulating gut function, so if you aren’t eating enough fiber, your stomach might experience bloating. 

When you are following a regular diet, it is generally very easy to ensure that you are consuming enough fiber.

However, when you are following a keto diet, it is incredibly easy to lose track of how much fiber you are consuming. This makes it very easy to fail to consume enough fiber. 

If you don’t eat enough fiber, this can really impact the passage of food through the digestive system.

This can cause a whole host of different stomach problems, and bloating is one of these problems. So if you aren’t eating enough fiber, you might experience bloating. 

Ways To Deal With It

• Monitor your fiber intake
• Consider taking fiber supplements if your diet doesn’t allow you to consume enough fiber

5. You Aren’t Drinking Enough Water

When your body becomes dehydrated, it will struggle to complete any of its functions properly.

So, if you aren’t drinking enough water, it is likely that you might become bloated. This could be the cause of your keto bloating.

While a lot of the time keto bloating can be attributed to the keto diet itself, sometimes the bloating can be caused by other things.

It is really easy to forget to drink enough water, so dehydration could be the cause of your keto bloating. 

If you know you are consuming enough fiber, and that you are within your recommended carbohydrate intake, take a look at your water consumption. 

Ways To Deal With It

• Ensure you drink enough water every single day
• Monitor your water intake to prevent dehydration

6. You Are Consuming Too Much MCT Oil

Getting your body to enter ketosis can be very difficult. That is the reason why a lot of people who are following this diet choose to consume MCT oil early on in their diet plan.

MCTs or medium-chain triglycerides are valuable tools that can be used to speed up ketosis. However, MCT oil bloating is very common, especially when it is consumed in large amounts. 

Consuming large amounts of MCT oil is very easy to do by mistake. So if you do this, it could cause you to experience keto bloating. 

Ways To Deal With It

• Ensure you do not consume too much MCT oil
• Reduce your MCT oil intake if you are experiencing stomach issues
• Use MCT powder instead of oil

7. You Suffer With Food Allergies

As we have said before, keto bloating will not always be caused by the keto diet itself. That is why you might experience keto bloating if you suffer from food allergies. 

Identifying food allergies isn’t easy. It can sometimes take rigorous testing and years of trial and error to identify allergens and intolerances.

So, it is possible for any bloating to be caused by unidentified intolerances. 

So, if you are struggling to pinpoint the exact cause of your keto bloating, there is a chance it could be due to allergies or intolerances. 

Ways To Deal With It

• Use the “elimination” method to identify allergens
• Keep track of what foods cause the bloating
• Visit a doctor for food allergen tests

8. You Are Experiencing Gut Flora Imbalance

In contrast, it is possible that your keto bloating could be caused by gut flora imbalance.

When you follow a keto diet you are training your body to change, and this can sometimes be met with resistance. 

In your guts, there are lots of healthy bacteria, and these are responsible for keeping your stomach and digestive system operating properly.

But, switching to a keto diet can impact this. 

So, if you experience some resistance from your body when you switch to a keto diet, this could be due to a gut flora imbalance.

Ways To Deal With It

• Supplement your diet with probiotics
• Ensure you only eat low-carb probiotic snacks

9. You Are Consuming Too Much Brassica Vegetables

Finally, it is very common for keto bloating to be caused by you consuming too much Brassica veg. 

Brassica vegetables are a group of vegetables that generally aren’t consumed as part of a regular diet, but are heavily featured in keto diets.

So, when you first switch to a keto diet, your body might be overwhelmed by a large amount of Brassica vegetables. 

So, if you are eating a lot of vegetables that you don’t normally eat, and are experiencing bloating. It could be due to Brassica vegetables. 

Ways To Deal With It

• Slowly introduce Brassica vegetables to your diet
• Replace some Brassica vegetables with alternatives that are easier to digest

Summary

In short, there are lots of reasons why you might experience bloating during your keto diet. 

Keto bloating is totally normal, and it is something that most people will experience at different points in their keto journey.

However, knowing the reason behind this bloating can really help shed some light on what is going on inside your body. 

It can also allow you to make changes to your diet to ensure you no longer experience the unpleasant side effect of keto bloating.

In this guide, we have taken a look at 9 of the main reasons why you may experience this. 

Thanks for reading!

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