How to Avoid Keto Flu Side Effects (and Some Remedies)

While it’s our hope to always avoid keto flu, it’s not always possible. Next thing you know, you’ve got all the classic keto flu symptoms…

• Fatigue
• Muscle Cramps
• Headaches
• Brain Fog
• Constipation
• Irritability
• Weakness

We’re here to help you understand what causes keto flu, how to avoid it, and otherwise get some simple remedies so you can avoid the side affects of keto flu.

What causes Keto Flu?

There’s no one specific thing that causes keto flu, but rather it’s often a combination of origins that are all symptomatic of eating a low carb diet. Here’s five different causes of keto flu:

#1 Low Sodium

We cannot stress this enough – Your body needs sodium.

Sodium regulates your fluid balance, a variety of hormones, and nerve impulses. Without it, you’re not going to feel super great. Low Carb lifestylers are at risk for sodium deficiency.

We’re not doctors, but here’s what we know about how a low carb diet affects your body: Especially in the first couple of weeks, you’ll likely lose quite a bit of weight. It’s really exciting, but a lot of it is excess water weight because your body is no longer storing the sodium.

What’s happening is that your kidneys are dumping it, leading to less water retention – so the scale says you magically lost 10 pounds in a week or two, but it’s really just water.

You are literally peeing out too much sodium. And when you combine that with the fact that you’re likely intaking less sodium now that you aren’t eating stuff like chips, crackers, etc… you set yourself up for getting keto flu.

#2 Dehydration

The irony is that dehydration and having low sodium go pretty hand in hand, and you have to have a good balance in order to avoid the side affects of keto flu.

Going back to that whole “everyone needs sodium” thing – When you don’t have enough in your body, your begin to lose water and this can lead to dehydration.

This doesn’t mean you should drink lots of water. In fact, that’s exactly the opposite of what you should do. Drinking more water just dilutes the amount of sodium in your body and flushes our the sodium, which just aggravates the keto flu symptoms.

Drink to thirst.

Throw out all of that advice of how you need to “Drink ___ number of ounces of water per day” or “Just chug down a gallon of water”. People mean well when they offer this advice, but low carb is very different from the eating protocol most people use.

#3 Carb Withdrawl

This is the more obvious reason for keto flu. Carbs are addictive. We hear/read people say this constantly “I can’t live without _____” or “I can’t imagine not being able to eat _____” and it’s always foods and drinks that are full of carbs.

Carb withdrawal causes keto flu because eating less sugar is physically comparative to weaning yourself off of drugs. Whether you meant to or not, it’s likely you’ve formed a sort of sugar addiction, and it’s not even your fault.

Your digestive system breaks carbs down into sugar, so even if you’re eating salty potato chips… your body translates the carbs into sugar. The sugar triggers the feel good chemicals in your brain and before you know it, you’re a sugar addict.

Most people experience keto flu symptoms to some degree for this reason – because it’s likely you formed some sort of addiction to sugar at some point, and now you’re weaning yourself off of it. Thankfully this is temporary if you stick with it!

#4 Less Glucose to Your Brain

Less carbs eaten equals less glucose – something your brain primarily runs on. When in the metabolic state of ketosis, you are taking in less glucose than you would if you were eating your more common, carb laden diet.

This isn’t bad or dangerous – it just means there’s a transition period between using the glucose for energy and instead relying on the backup energy source known as Ketones.

Ketones are an alternative fuel made by your liver. When your body doesn’t have enough sugar or glucose to burn for energy, it turns to use your ketones instead, and that’s when you start breaking down fat for energy.

It’s not always as easy transition, and sometimes it leaves people feeling some of the side effects of the keto flu for a few days.

You do not need to drink any of these Ketones drinks being pushed by MLMers. Your body produces ketones itself. All these drinks are doing is creating rather expensive urine.

#5 Not Enough Fiber

Constipation and diarrhea are among the common keto flu symptoms, and they are directly correlated to your lack of fiber intake.

When you’re eating low cab or keto, you eliminate a lot of the foods you were likely getting dietary fiber from… foods like fruits, whole grains, and starchy vegetables. Dietary fiber is important because it’s what moves food through your gut and keeps you pooping regularly.

You’ll need to transition to eating approved foods with a higher fiber content.

Keto Flu Remedies

Now that you have a better understanding of what causes keto flu, let’s talk about some simple keto flu remedies and how to apply them to your eating protocol.

#1 Replenish your Electrolytes

At the core of replenishing your electrolytes is your need for sodium chloride (aka salt) so that your body can retain enough water to keep that feeling of hydration. There’s also a need for Potassium and Magnesium Malate (Citrate makes you poop!).

There’s a few ways you can replenish your electrolytes:

• Salt everything well – your morning eggs, any meats you consume, salad, and even your drinks. This isn’t going to be enough on its own, but it’s an excellent start.
  
  
• Drink “Ketoade” – I personally love using the Crystal Light single packs mixed with 1/4 tsp of Redmond’s Real Salt (or more if you can tolerate it) per 16oz cup. This particular Fine Sea Salt contains potassium and iodine – which are also both essential as part of your dietary needs.
  
  
• Incorporate an Electrolyte drink – If you want something keto approved and seriously no fuss (no need to measure it out – just dump it in some water within a mixer bottle and go), LMNT Recharge is hands down the best option. It’s got 1000mg of Sodium, 200mg Potassium, and 60mg Magnesium. We’re obsessed with the flavors, and these are fantastic for after any sort of workout.
  
  Powerade Zero is another good choice if you’re out and about and need to be able to grab something approved at the gas station. A 28oz bottle contains 375mg of Sodium, and 87.5mg of Magnesium.

#2 Hydrate in accordance with thirst

Yes, it’s always important to drink enough water, but drinking too much water can cause keto flu because you flush out electrolytes. You end up diluting your sodium, magnesium, and potassium levels, which can worsen your keto flu symptoms.

Instead, we recommend:

• Only drink to thirst – There’s no need for drinking gallons of water every day, or using calculators to determine how much water you should be drinking based on your weight.
  
  
• Use an iodized fine sea salt in your water (or drink ketoade) to help maintain the balance.

#3 Eat non-starchy, higher fiber Vegetables

Think green and high fiber veggies like broccoli, kale, asparagus, spinach, lettuce, etc. These are low carb and contain minerals your body needs like potassium and magnesium.

Magnesium in particular will help ease muscle cramps, lower your blood pressure, regulate heartbeat and improve cardiovascular health, aid in digestive health, boost athletic performance, reduce inflammation, and may even help relieve symptoms of anxiety and depression.

Potassium regulates fluid balance and can help reduce your blood pressure and water retention as well as protect you against stroke and getting kidney stones.

Suffice it to say… getting in your non-starchy, higher fiber veggies is pretty important for anyone, but especially someone eating low carb.

We recommend taking this Magnesium Malate supplement (1 in the morning, and 2-3 at night with a meal), and this Potassium Citrate supplement (1-5 capsules a day with a meal) to help you consume enough of these vital minerals.

How to avoid Keto Flu symptoms

Just because you’re eating a ketogenic diet doesn’t mean you ever have to experience the effects of keto flu. By following the above remedies, you should be able to keep you electrolytes in balance, maintain proper fiber intake, and keep yourself appropriately hydrated.