Vitamin Water & Keto: Unmasking the Flavor Myth

Determining whether Vitamin Water is keto-friendly involves considering if it’s just another sports drink filled with electrolytes, vitamins, and sugar.¹

They’re marketed as a healthy alternative to other hydrating sport drinks and have become popular around the gym, offices, and sporting events, but the keto water flavor myth explanation details just how sweeteners can affect ketosis and reveals if Vitamin Water is acceptable on a keto diet too.

So let’s clear up any misconceptions.

Is Vitamin Water Suitable for a Keto Diet? Is Vitamin Water Approved for a Keto Diet?

Typically, Vitamin Water is not keto friendly as it contains a relatively high amount of net carbs but luckily there’s a type of vitamin water that’s acceptable for keto as well as alternatives that are even better.

Let us explain…

For a diet to remain keto, an individual must consume 20 and 50 grams of carbs per day, however, carbohydrates consist of three types: sugars, starches, and fiber where net carbs equal total carbs minus fiber.^{2, 3} This is important to consider because Vitamin Water contains 0 grams of fiber, meaning all carbs are ingested into the body.

Vitamin Water is not really keto-friendly. Consider a few of the various flavors of Vitamin Water (serving of 1 bottle) below, which is owned by the beverage company Coca Cola—they all have no fiber, and the amount of the net carb they contain easily eclipses the minimum recommended daily intake:

• Vitamin Water Energy Tropical Citrus contains 27 grams of net carbs
• Vitamin Water Revive Fruit Punch contains 26 grams of net carbs
• Vitamin Water Focus Kiwi Strawberry contains 26 grams of net carbs

Clearly, these drinks will have the ability to throw someone off a keto diet when considering that they can account for over half the daily carbohydrate count. Fortunately, other types of Vitamin Water are more keto, and other alternative beverages to lose belly fat in 4 days can be found on the market.

Are Vitamin Water Zero Varieties Suitable for Keto?

Vitamin Water has a brand known as Vitamin Water Zero, which can actually be considered keto due to the low carb amount that it contains in comparison to the regular version. Vitamin water zero comes in several flavors and some flavors have dietary fiber, particularly their new product, gutsy watermelon peach.

Source: Manu1174 via Canva.com⁴

However, the primary reason that Vitamin Water Zero is keto is that they have different sweeteners used as a substitute for cane sugar in the United States and sucrose in other countries. The keto water flavor myth explained is that Vitamin Water uses sweeteners such as cane sugar that render Vitamin Water generally non-keto.

Coca-Cola Vitamin Water Zero (formerly known as Glaceau Vitamin Water Zero) uses stevia and erythritol as sweetener substitutes. They have a lower content of carbohydrates and, as a bonus, are lower in calories.

Stevia is produced from the leaves of the stevia leaf, which is native to South America and is non nutritive, making it almost free from calories.⁵ This makes it ideal for those conscious about losing weight; it is surprisingly up to 400 times sweeter than conventional sugar and is often used in small quantities.

The little vitamins and minerals it has are typically removed during processing. It is the ideal substitute for cane sugar and is found in low-calorie drinks such as Vitamin Water Zero.⁶

Erythritol is a type of sugar alcohol found naturally in mushrooms and fruits or through the fermentation of corn using yeast and has a low-calorie count at 0.2 kcal per gram and is about 80% as sweet as sugar.⁷ The human body cannot digest this substance due to an absence of enzymes, and it is immediately absorbed into the blood and passed off as urine—it has no effect on blood sugar levels which is ideal for those on keto.

Stevia in the form of steviol glycosides which are constituents of the leaves are safe as per guidelines set by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) but not the actual leaf and crude stevia extracts.⁸ Erythritol may have some side effects, such as causing diarrhea and gas in certain sections of the population. However, both sweeteners are tolerated by most people as long as doses do not remain high.

Both these sweeteners allow Vitamin Water Zero to be keto, ensuring low carbohydrate content, and are also low in calories—they are also ideal for diabetics since they don’t affect blood sugar levels.

When is it Appropriate to Consume Vitamin Water While on Keto? When Is Vitamin Water Considered Keto?

For those on a keto diet wondering if Vitamin Water is keto-friendly, the answer is no. It should be consumed throughout the day and remain the only carb source of the day. It should not be consumed at once due to it potentially spiking the sugar levels because of its high sugar and carb content.

By ensuring that it remains the only carb source, the threat of breaching the daily threshold becomes minimized.

The only time Vitamin Water is keto is when Vitamin Water Zero is consumed because is has has a much lower carb count. Moreover, like regular Vitamin Water, it does come in an abundance of flavors, with new ones being added due to its popularity—the net carbs for each flavor are detailed in the next section and appear below:

• Gutsy watermelon peach
• Xxx acai-blueberry pomegranate
• Shine strawberry lemonade
• Revive fruit punch
• Ice cool blueberry lavender
• Rise orange
• Go-go mixed berry
• Reset pineapple coconut
• Power-c dragonfruit
• Squeezed lemonade
• Look blueberry hibiscus

Net Carbs in Vitamin Water & Net Carbs in Vitamin Water Zero

Net carbs are a significant factor in determining if Vitamin Water is keto-friendly. In reality, the net carbs in the regular Vitamin Water (20 fl oz. 591ml) flavors are quite high and are detailed:

The net carbs in vitamin water zero (20 fl oz. 591ml) flavors are detailed below and are excellent for those following weight loss rules; hydration being a key tenet:

Drinks for Keto: Water Flavoring Alternatives & Keto Sports Drinks

Fortunately for those on a keto diet, there are several market alternatives to Vitamin Water that have zero carbs and come in a variety of flavorful options. Moreover, many of these options have 0 net grams of carbs and are considered low carb energy drinks.

Source: DragonImages via Canva.com⁹

As seen above, only two flavors offered by Vitamin Water Zero have no carbs at all. Having no carbs in the drink is always desirable to allow for more flexibility in choice in solid meals.

These brands are among the ideal keto water flavoring and sports drinks available on the market—they all have zero carbs except two that have been denoted:

• Mio—this alternative has 0 grams of net carbs and even though some ask if Mio is bad for you, all the ingredients are approved by the FDA and it’s a healthy alternative when consumed in moderation.
• Gatorade zero—Gatorade also has a zero carb option that is a popular alternative to Vitamin Water Zero keto choices and is 0 carbs. While Gatorade zero does help replenish electrolytes but the artificial sweeteners it contains may make children hyper and increase resistance to insulin.
• Powerade zero—this keto water flavor drink contains vitamins and electrolytes, which is beneficial for those on keto, and has no calories, carbs, and sugar.
• Hint fruit-infused water brand—this brand is an excellent alternative, and infused water can also be homemade with personal fruit choices.
• Sparkling ice— Sparkling ice is indeed keto-friendly, as it contains zero carbs. However, it does contain sucralose, which may increase the appetite of those who consume it.
• Bang energy drinks— Bang is certainly good for weight loss, as this energy drink is both calorie and sugar-free, but it does have a high caffeine content and should be consumed sparingly.
• Zevia zero-calorie energy drink—like Vitamin Water, Zevia uses the stevia leaf as a sweetener and has just enough caffeine to boost energy levels.
• Organic monk fruit sweetener—this has less than 0.8 grams of net carbs and uses monk fruit extract as the sweetener, which has both anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Inflammation is the body’s reaction as a defense mechanism against harmful objects, and antioxidants help shield the body against free radicals—produced when the body breaks down food.
• Using electrolyte powders—brands like Ultima replenisher and LMNT (1 gram of net carbs) mixed into regular water make for ideal substitutes.

Many people looking to add flavor to their hydration wonder if Vitamin Water is keto-friendly. In reality, it is not. The best alternatives are Vitamin Water Zero and other low-sugar sports drinks mentioned above.