Does apple cider vinegar break a fast? đź‘€

#1

Hey, so just wondering about apple cider vinegar. Does it break a fast?? :thinking:

(Todd Gamel) #2

No, it should not break your fast. In fact there are many recipes for a drink that is used by some when fasting that contains AVC. I make something similar to this and drink once a day when I am on an extended fast. I have included a video link here for you to check out.

Thomas Delauer ACV Fasting Drink Recipe

#3

Ah ok got it :ok_hand:t2: Thanks for that! :laughing:

#4

@Dimplestilskin Thanks for asking this question, it was something I was wondering about too.

@TGAMEL62 Thank you for answering.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #5

Technically, ACV is a fat. . . .

#6

Are you being facetious or would you like to elaborate on that?

#7

Vinegar, also known as acetic acid, is a carboxylic acid, with two carbon atoms. The chemical formula is CH3COOH.

There are other carboxylic acids with more carbon atoms which are fatty acids. E.g. Lauric acid, one of the fatty acids in coconut oil contains 12 carbon atoms with a chemical formula of CH3(CH2)10COOH. Butyric acid, which is found in butter contains just 4 carbon atoms with a formula of CH3(CH2)2COOH.

I don’t think that acetic acid is considered to be a fat by most people, but the chemical formula is similar to that of fatty acids - the main difference is that a fatty acid has a longer aliphatic chain.

(I don’t really know that much about this stuff. I had a lot of help from Wikipedia.)

#8

Thomas DeLauer has an ACV drink for fasting. In case you haven’t seen it…

The ingredients are water, ACV, salt, cream of tartar (potassium), and one whole lime. Of these ingredients, he says that the only thing which might technically break your fast is the lime. He calls for two tbsp of vinegar in his drink recipe. According to info from the USDA, that 2 tbsp amount has 6 calories of energy (which comes from carbohydrate). The lime has about 20 calories.

I would guess that if you consume enough ACV, it would break your fast.

It really boils down to the definition of “breaking your fast”. If you’re very strict, any caloric intake is breaking your fast. But, for some purposes, it seems reasonable to relax it slightly for things like ACV drinks and bone broth. If you’re fasting for autophagy, it might be best to stick to just water. (But do your own research on this matter if you’re fasting for that reason.)

(What The Fast?!) #9

FYI, the ingredient list is below. He talks a lot, so in case you’re in a hurry:
10-12oz water
1/4 - 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp pink salt
juice of one lime

(Aimee Moisa) #10

THIS

I like listening to Dr. Fung lecture and Wes at Highfalutin Low Carb babble but TD drives me batty.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #11

No, I wasn’t being facetious, just passing on a little-known fact that startled me when I learned it on these forums. As @KevinB already explained—fortunately for me—the chemical formula meets the technical definition of a fat, but it’s a one-carbon “chain,” whereas most fatty acids comprise several carbons. If you put three acetic acid molecules on a glycerol backbone, you’d have an SPCT—shortest-possible-chain triglyceride. And now I am being facetious. :grinning:

#12

@KevinB Okay, thanks for the concise response. I tried researching it myself but I need a refresher in chemistry. I don’t think it makes ACV “technically a fat” as @PaulL suggested; but technically a precocious fatty acid, yes.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #13

Sorry. I was using the word “fat” as a synonym for “fatty acid.” I should have looked in my dictionary. Apparently “fat” is actually synonymous with “triglyceride.”