6 weeks on keto, but still getting large ketone readings in both urine and breath. Is this normal?

(Tom) #1

I have been on keto for 6 weeks now, but don’t have the clarity or sustained energy I was expecting.

I have done the diet perfectly, with abolutely no cheating.

I have been in ketosis since around the 3rd day, and been in ketosis everyday since.

The trouble is, I still show as having large amounts of ketones in my urine every morning (almost the darkest of purples on the reference chart). Does this seem strange after 6 weeks? I expected the results to drop as my body becomes fat adapted.

I purchased a breath meter, and it’s just the same. On a morning it normally reads between 8-10.

Am I doing something wrong? Should I be concerned? Will I get acidosis?

Help?

#2

As long as the ketones are showing, don’t worry about it. Many don’t get ketone levels high enough to get the whole mental clarity thing. Only time I’ve had it is when I’m doing multi-day fasts or when I take exogenous ketones.

Nope, Nope, and basically impossible unless you’re a Type 1 Diabetic

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #3

Because of variations in the sensitivity of the strips, urine measurements are not particularly precise. The strips were developed primarily to warn Type I diabetics of an impending crisis so that they can seek treatment. If your pancreas is still producing insulin, you don’t need to worry about ketoacidosis. Breath meters are also inherently inaccurate, especially the cheap ones. (It depends on what they are actually measuring.) The most accurate ketone measurement is of β-hydroxybutyrate in the blood, and even there, some of the home meters measure to within a range of ±20%.

There are a couple of drugs that can cause ketoacidosis, but if you were taking one, your doctor would have warned you what to look out for.

So relax, you’re doing fine.