Ketone breath, Help!

#1

So it’s finally happened. My breath is now bad enough to knock down a zombie army. I believe my partner described it as ‘definitely rotten fruit’. What on earth do I do to mask it? It couldn’t have happened at a worse time. Is it just temporary? Please, fellow ketoers, do share your tips how you disguised/still disguise that ghastly breath! Thank you.

#2

Lots of mouthwash, teeth brushing, and peanut butter. Drink water all the time. It’s less your breath and more that it’s coming up on you, so harder to fight than normal bad breath. It does go away though.

You can also play with your carb levels to drop ketone levels lower if it’s really bad. Your body always over reacts at first and you make WAY more than you need, and than you burn. Activity and burning them will help as well.

(Pete A) #3

It’ll pass.

#4

Thank you, I will try those things. I’m not very partial to peanuts, but do eat almonds, walnuts and brazil nuts. As well as berries. Oddly though, it seemed the ketone breath only reared its head after I added in more carbs, after a recent health scare that made me realize I didn’t want to continue a carnivore diet long term. I also switched from total carbohydrate counting to counting net carbs. I do drink lots of water, but that in itself doesn’t help. But I am pleased to learn it’s not going to be a permanent thing on keto.

#5

Thank you. I hope so. I do find it odd that it happened after I decided to bring back in the carbs. I am on a more relaxed keto where I’m counting net carbs which makes it more sustainable.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #6

That sounds as though it’s not keto breath, but carb breath, then. Especially if it goes away when you remove those carbs from your diet again.

My breath is always worse, the more carbohydrate I eat. When I keep the carbs as low as possible, my breath smells fine.

#7

I do, however, still keep it to only 20 carbs. I had eliminated all carbs, but after a recent health scare, I won’t go into the details, I added back in the greens, nuts and berries I started out with on my original Keto WOE. I just see this far more sustainable in the long run, and as I’ve dropped even more in weight, I think it’s the right choice

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #8

Whatever works best for you. A lot of people are much healthier with no plant foods whatsoever, since the human body evolved on an almost exclusively meat diet, but there’s enough individual variation out there, such that some people do better if they don’t exclude carbohydrate completely from their diet.

#9

Thank you. It does seem like I fall into the latter bracket. I believe a lot of people can thrive on carnivore, and some people have no choice but to eliminate plants. But as you say, experiences are both varied and individual, as one WOE does not fit all. Ultimately, although I perfectly understand about consistency, if my body gives me a clue I’m headed in the wrong direction I always listen. As to carb breath, well, who can say, but I didn’t have this issue with foul breath when I was on a high carb, low fat diet. And my partner’s description, rotten fruit, immediately made me think of ketone breath, well that, and the fact I’ve dropped even more in weight.

#10

It’s interesting but not surprising that some people get bad breath from keto, others from carbs and some people like me just never get it. My body is super stubborn, it’s very hard to make significant changes with a woe change (but slight changes matter too and sometimes bigger ones happen). I feel pretty okay on all woe I am able to do (especially before I try something better. going back to something worse isn’t something my body likes to do) but I want the best so I follow my body to wherever it feels best. To some extent as it feels best on carnivore but that’s a tad restrictive to my mind and inner rebel and whatnot… At least in certain months. Like December.

#11

Hi Shinita. I don’t believe it’s the inner rebel so much as your body giving you hints along the way what it’s most happy with. Although I enjoyed the carnivore foods, particularly with dairy to accommodate them, I am more comfortable with adding some greens, dark chocolate, nuts and berries to my Keto WOE, it allows for more variety, and I do believe my body requires that variety in order to function well on any WOE long term. I never think about adding back in bread, cakes, biscuits etc, even in December, as that just doesn’t appeal to me. But I let myself fall back on the cheese wagon, deciding the christmas period is not the time to cut out the foods I love.

#12

It’s totally my mind and inner rebel. My body doesn’t want plants, I feel that.

I am different from you. I don’t care about vegs, most oily seeds and berries much. And I very much dislike greens, always did, even when I was in love with vegetables (the non-green ones. except pea. pea is lovely).
If I add anything, that’s usually something high-carb.
Not always, I like my walnut pancakes (I don’t need them but they are useful when I can’t stomach any of my carni food while being hungry. fortunately rarely happens) and they have negligible non-animal net carbs.

I need variety but carnivore offers much and my carnivore-ish/near carnivore (the -ish is way stricter) offers usually enough.

I am a hedonist. No time is the time to refuse food and resist temptation :slight_smile:
But it’s time to train myself as always…
I choose my battles well so I don’t eat early (I often have my first meal around 6pm nowadays, yay!) and I do try to do carnivore but don’t beat myself up over failing…

And I do try to postpone the crazy wild before-Christmas time that may or may not come this year…