Never posted pics before so hope they aren’t huge. 2 days in with the protein restriction and nothing yet (except some weight loss but I fluctuate a lot). Giving it a few more days before I determine the breathalyzer isn’t working for my ketones!
Test Breath Ketones without a Ketonix (using a cheap breathalyzer)
roxanna
(roxanna)
#83
No, the goals aren’t my actual goals. I’m aiming for ~100-110 which is .8 LBM. MFP for some reason changes the goals all the time to bizarre #s. Before, however, with the ZC I wasn’t paying attention to how much I was eating so I would eat minimum like 135 and sometimes a lot more. So far still blowing zeros!
yogipete
#84
My doctor cousin tells me the sensors break after 6 months of constant use.
But that doesn’t explain your meter working for alcohol and not for acetone. I’m stumped.
Is it possible you are in ketosis but with no acetone? How’s your breath?
BantingBen
(Ben)
#86
I’m now the proud owner of an AT6000 too!
I tried it on Sunday morning, but it showed a reading of zero. Not surprising, though, as I’d had a couple of beers on Thursday, Friday and Saturday as well as some Xylitol in a meringue recipe I tried out to use up some egg whites.
Today it’s reading 0.04, which is encouraging.
Moral of the story for me is to stay off the beer (or at least search out some low carb ones)
yogipete
#87
Okay, my meter has started behaving weirdly now. It occasionally reads 0. Now while it’s possible it means I’m not in ketosis during those times there is something else weird about it. When the meter reads 0 it takes absolutely no processing time. Normally the meter takes 1 second after the final beep before showing my results. Not so when it’s 0. It just immediately says “0”. So there’s a few of possibilities:
- The meter is working correctly and I’m blowing 0 acetone
- The meter’s sensor didn’t work and hence it just shows 0
So, I’m asking if anyone with the AT6000 has blown a zero then had the 1 second delay before the device reports a 0. This could help me determine which of the above it is.
It would seem unlikely that I am sometimes waking up out of ketosis but I guess it’s possible. My own sense of breath acetone tells me I’m still in ketosis but that could just be funky morning breath.
roxanna
(roxanna)
#89
Well, my breath definitely seems off at times, and more often, my sweat is smelly. I feel like I have the signs of ketosis. I am noticing a benefit of weight loss with reducing the protein even while eating a ton of calories and fat.
gatita
#90
I ordered the AT6000 after reading this thread. Can’t wait to try it and post results.
I’m one of those weird few who still get clear results on Ketostix after six months in ketosis. I double-check with the blood strips, but I prefer the idea of using this cheapo blowhorn, so thanks!
yogipete
#91
Welcome. I look forward to seeing you results.
I use my meter many times a day now. It’s fairly reliable but a little weird. I usually blow between .24 and .30 mg/L. Sometimes after a meal I’ll blow lower (like .11 mg/L). It seems this is giving me valuable information about how various meals affect my ketosis.
gatita
#92
So I got mine and tested; here are my three-way comparative results for this morning:
AT6000: 0.6 % BAC or .33 mg/l (It said high and beeped at me!)
Blood ketones: 1.8
Ketostix: Moderate (medium purple)*
The first time I blew into the AT6000, it read zero, but after that it seems to be fairly consistent, varying only a bit with each use.
I’m going to try it again tonight after a vodka cocktail or two, heh heh.
- As I noted earlier, I’m one of those rare/weird people who still pees ketones after many months into keto, so ketostix still work pretty well for me.
Pretty cool little hack, thanks @yogipete for the tip! I especially like it because I don’t like pricking my finger – ouch.
gatita
#93
Oh also – when mine read zero it also took no time to process the results. I blew again and got positive results that took a second or two to process.
So I think the quick zero is the machine not registering the breath for some reason. At least that’s my theory.
skyraft
#94
Can you plug your ketonix into your computer so that you could get a more accurate reading.
There seems to be a lot of factors that can mug up the readings.
Maybe ketonix is specifically made to only test acetone rather than ethanol and other alcohols etc.
yogipete
#95
No. The accuracy doesn’t change. It is what it is.
People with ketonix have a similar variability though the sensor might be a little more reliable. I’ve used the breathalyzer a little over a month now and it’s really useful. Sometimes I need drink of water before using it so I don’t get zero readings. No sure what’s going on with that.
gatita
#97
That’s good to know.
So tonight I had around two ounces of vodka and boy, did it want to give a reading fast! I barely started the breath when it beeped. Reading of .49 mg/l! So it seems to sense alcohol pretty well.
This is while my ketostix was still showing medium purple. Anyway, I like using this thing, it’s kind of fun.
yogipete
#98
Yeah, me too. It’s helping me a lot. I over-ate pistachios today and it was very clear about them knocking me out of ketosis. I love that I can use it all day and after every meal. The quirks soon become apparent.
I should clarify above. A quick drink of water or carbonated water.
BantingBen
(Ben)
#99
I’m enjoying using mine too 
It’s keeping me on the straight and narrow - now I have it and it’s showing that I’m in ketosis, I want to stay that way.
I’m conducting my own n=1 with it to see how many glasses of wine and beer I can have without being kicked out.
So far 2 pints of beer is OK, 2 pints of beer three days in a row isn’t (not a habit - a few socials over Easter)
yogipete
#100
You’ve lost me on how that would work. The breathalyzer measure alcohol and acetone as equals. So if the alcohol kicks you out of ketosis the breath meter will still show a reading.