Poor Ketone Levels In Low-carb Diet
Hi, I have been looking to buy Ketone test strips in South-Africa, but couldn't find it since they aren't stocked anywhere. I'm on a Ketogenic diet and found a new company that supplies them online and delivers to your doorstep in South-Africa. It is called LIPOstix and can be baught online via www.dietnostix.co.za/lipostix ; each pack includes 30 test strips. Hopefully this helps Regards Reply to Anonymous Ignorance is bliss.. Health24 get someone who knows what they are talking about Reply to Suprised I have lost 20 kgs on Atkins almost three sizes down. It's the most successful diet for me. I know the doc doesn't approve of it as such, but I believe that I would rather stick to a diet I can handle and that works for me, and become thinner, than stay fat and have to worry about the long term effects of obesity. You get the ketone sticks at most chemists. Reply to Another Dieter Hi Loz Are you on the Atkins diet? Where did you buy the test strips to test the ketone levels? How much weight have you lost so far? Reply to Paula The amount of ketones in your urine doesn't correlate to the amount weightloss. If you drink alot of fluids in a day this will change the ketone level reflected in your urine - only because the concentration level is less. If you're in ketosis then you'll be losing weight - don't worry about the ketosis levels as such. In Atkins book he makes it clear that provided the stick is turning slightly purple, then things are on track. Reply to Another Dieter Continue reading >>
Testing For Ketones…
One of the things I really like about this diet, is the ability to check that your food-choices are having the desired effect. What do I mean? If you’re in ketosis, then you’re definitely burning body-fat! Other diets don’t have this security-blanket. On a low-fat diet, you only have the scales to rely upon. And these fluctuate daily, with sufficient variation to make even the most rational person more than a little paranoid about their progress… So how do you test for ketones? There are two methods currently available on the market: Ketone testing-strips e.g. Ketostix. These test ketones excreted in the urine Ketone blood-testing meters e.g. Freestyle Optimum. These test ketone-levels in the blood. There’s naturally a huge difference in price between the two. So which is better? Ketone-strips are a cheap and cheerful method (my diabetic partner & I both use them currently). You place a single strip into the urine-stream and after 15 seconds, the colour changes to indicate ketone-levels . It shows a gradation of weak > strong; and you match the colour of the strip against that scale (indicated on the side of the packaging). A ketone-level somewhere between 1.5 – 3 is said to be the optimal level for maximizing weight-loss. Pros & cons? Well; I’m colour-blind, which makes things rather difficult!!; but I can still detect the stronger intensities, so it’s pretty functional on a day-to-day level. What it’s important to realise, is that ketones excreted in urine are only ‘excess’ ketones, not metabolised by the body (i.e. the excess energy you haven’t burnt, which would otherwise have been stored as fat on a glucose diet). The strips don’t therefore indicate actual levels in the body. There’s inevitably a time-lag too, as the strips will be indic Continue reading >>
Why Ketonix
Why Ketonix rather than a urine or blood test for ketones? As always there is a short and a long answer, the short answer is: Ketones are formed by breaking down fatty acids in your liver and can be used instead of glucose. When your body breaks down fat and creates ketones your body is in a state called ketosis. There are many advantages to using fat as energy source instead of sugar (carbohydrates). There are also many reasons for choosing a diet that gets your body into a ketogenic state, some therapeutic uses include the treatment of epilepsy, diabetes, cancer, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, increased fertility and weight loss. Ketosis is not the same state as ketoacidosis which can occur when a person with diabetes type 1 has a very high blood sugar level combined with a high concentration of ketones. High blood sugar is caused mainly by sugar and carbohydrates, not fat. A ketogenic diet is very low in carbohydrates, moderate in protein and high in fat and it normalises the blood sugar in your body. Any required glucose in your blood, body can be produced from protein. Being in ketosis can have a huge advantage sports men and women. When your body has adapted to using fat as fuel, the muscles use fat and the brain and heart use ketones. The muscles and brain do not compete to get fuel as can happen when glucose fuelled. We have all seen the result of this competition for glucose, a phenomenon called bonking where athletes often collapsed just before reaching the finish line. Additionally the production of lactic acid is minimized when you muscles are burning fat for fuel. There are three main ketones used by the human body being acetoacetate, acetone and beta-hydroxybutyrate. Acetoacetate, is formed either from the breaking down of fatty acids in the liver or from t Continue reading >>
Ketone Strip Reviews Which Keto Urine Sticks Are The Best?
If this is your first-time hearing about keto strips as a weight loss product, then you’re probably wondering what in the world they are. Fortunately, we’re here not only to answer that question but to also give you the rundown on how to find the type and brand is the best keto strip today. But first, let’s rewind a bit. To understand what these products do, it’s important to first understand ketosis. This process is the metabolic state in which your liver breaks down body fat. Through this process it produces ketones. During a ketogenic diet, they are your body’s primary source of fuel. What this means is, if you want to lose weight through this process, then these particular bodies are essential to keep your body powering through the challenges of everyday life. As you can imagine, this would make measuring your bodies ketone levels very important during the process of this diet. There are three primary methods of doing so: For more information on choosing the right measurement tool for you and getting the most accurate results possible, you definitely need to keep reading this review. Continue reading >>
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Hello From Just Fitter What people are saying about us.. "So, I was recently diagnosed with moderate non alcoholic fatty liver disease, and told that I should start eating a low carb diet. Keto was suggested by my GI doctor, so I bought a couple of books and these ketone test strips and got started. These do exactly what they are supposed to do, and are very helpful for me, personally, because my efforts are measurable. I don't have to wonder if what I am doing is working (between doctor's visits, of course.) I'll purchase these again, when I run out." Jeremy "The strips work great and are easy to handle and read. They even have a larger scale comparison chart you can take off the back of the box for a easier to compare reading of your results. Easy open jar makes me feel a bit more secure opening them near my toilet!" Mickey "I am new to the Keto Zone Diet. I find this product to be very helpful in guiding me through the proper stages of Ketosis. After two weeks of following the Keto Zone Diet and using the Just Fitter Test Strips, I am right on target! The strips are easy to use and easy to read. Great Product." Pepper "They arrived with in a day or two and are very easy to use as read. They make Ketosis much easier to determine. The follow up from purchase has been great. Very happy with the strips. Keeps me on target" Rachel Just Fitter is in the Media. Read About Us in Recent News.... Premium Health & Fitness Products to Help Create the Perfect You! Join the JUST FITTER INSIDERS CLUB for new videos, discount codes, and more! Continue reading >>
Ketosis: The Key That Opened The Lock
Recently I have taken my low carb, moderate protein, high fat primal diet to a new level. I have gone a step further and have also cut out nuts, berries, alcohol and dark chocolate as well as dairy (except for a little hard cheese and butter). I had to eliminate these foods so that I could get my consumption of carbs low enough to get into nutritional ketosis. Ketosis is when your body switches from burning glucose for fuel to burning ketones. Basically, your body is enabled to burn stored fat for energy instead of using the glucose from the food you eat at each meal. My fat-fighting toy I have a nifty little blood meter (Abbott Freestyle Optium) and ketone test strips, which I bought at Dischem. It is similar to the blood glucose meter that diabetics use but this one measures blood glucose AND ketones. I just have to buy separate strips for each purpose. I have been pricking my finger and testing myself regularly for the last 5 months. Unfortunately I have endured 5 months of complete and utter frustration and disappointment. Maybe I purchased a faulty meter? Maybe my body is so stuffed up that I just can’t do this? Getting into a state of nutritional ketosis totally eluded me – until now. I am a keto-adapted fat fighting machine It was only after I dropped the berries, dairy, nuts, alcohol and dark chocolate that I finally tasted victory. I am thrilled to report that I am now keto-adapted. I have turned my body into a fat burning machine! The range for ketosis is between 0.5 and 3. Those are the numbers I aim for. Seeing those numbers on the little screen and getting this feedback has been amazing for my motivation levels as there is no more guess-work. If I am “in the zone” then I know my body is burning stored fat. It is that simple. I have managed to effort Continue reading >>
Do You Really Need Ketostix?
If you’ve ever spent time browsing the #keto hashtag on Instagram (what? I like to get meal ideas!), you’ve likely seen pictures of ketostix, proudly displaying their pinkish purple results. It’s exciting! It’s an almost instant way to tell if you’re in ketosis…sort of. Either way, the concentration of keto strip pictures on social media would seem to indicate that they’re necessary. After all, don’t you want to know you’re in ketosis? So, what’s the deal with ketostix? Do we really need keto strips to know we’re in ketosis? What Are Ketostix? Basically, ketostix (or keto strips) are used to detect ketones in your urine or blood. If you’re in ketosis, your body will excrete a measurable amount of ketones. This is a fairly good indicator of whether or not you were recently in ketosis. I say recently because if you have literally just eaten a piece of chocolate cake, and then go to test to see if you got knocked out of ketosis (spoiler alert: you did), it might not register for a little while. There are typically two types of keto strips. One is the type that you pee on, and the other is a blood test. For the latter, you use the same type of testing kit that diabetics use to test blood sugar levels, only with a different type of strip. The strips for the blood meters are actually really expensive, so most people tend to go with the first type mentioned. Alternatively, you could use a ketone monitor that checks for ketone levels in your breath. This is the most accurate way to check ketone levels, as it’s a snapshot of your body’s current state. These are disposable, but still more costly than just peeing on a strip. So… Do I Need Ketostix to Know I’m in Ketosis? Maybe, this one’s kind of relative. When you’re just starting out on a keto Continue reading >>
Are Keto Sticks Fat Burning Indicators Or A Fat Waste Of Money?
You will no doubt have come across keto sticks if you’ve ever done a ketogenic diet planor read any message boards about low carb diets. Whilst a lot of dieters use them, they do not always understand how to read the results and adjust their diet to optimise it. This article aims to resolve this and clear up the facts about keto strips. Ketogenic diets force your body to adapt to using fat for fuel when glucose (from carbs) is not present, this is known as ketosis Ketones are a by-product of ketosis and keto sticks (also known as ketostix or ketosticks) are urine testing strips which detect the presence of ketones in the blood. They are small plastic strips with an absorbent pad on the end, you urinate on the absorbent pad and it changes colour to reflect the amount of ketones present in your urine. They are also sometimes referred to as keto diastix, don’t get confused as these are two different products. Keto diastix are usually used by Type I diabetics to detect the presence of glucose, they are of no use to keto dieters. Where Can I Purchase Keto Sticks? Amazon is probably your most convenient option – the best I have found online is this: Nurse Hatty Ketone Strips. Diabetics use keto strips also, so sometimes they are with other diabetic products or behind the counter. Ask a shop assistant for help if required. Keto strips are cheap to purchase, no more that a few pounds and a pot will last you a long while. The pot contains a number of strips and a colour chart on the side which ranges from clear to pink to purple. Once you have urinated on the stick, you wait 10-15 seconds and then match the colour of the stick to the chart. Clear: No/trace ketones in your urine Pink: Some ketones in your urine Purple: High level of ketones in your urine Quite simply, No. P Continue reading >>
Ketostix: What Are Ketostix And How Do I Use Them?
If you’ve been reading up on keto dieting for a while, you’ve no doubt come across people talking about Ketostix (sometimes improperly spelled as ketosticks or keto sticks). What are ketostix? Why do you need them? We answer all that and more in our complete guide to Ketostix and ketone urinalysis testing. What are Ketostix? Simply put, Ketostix are small, thin plastic strips with a small reagent area on them. When Ketostix are dipped in urine (or passed through a stream of urine), the reagent area changes color to indicate the amount of ketones that are present in your urine. This is an important indicator for those on ketogenic diets because it lets us know that our body has adapted to ketosis and we are doing the diet right. Do I need to buy Ketostix? Yes and no. Ketostix serve two very important functions for ketogenic dieters: Troubleshooting: Beginners find Ketostix useful because it is an indicator that they are doing the ketogenic diet correctly and have indeed limited their carbohydrate consumption sufficiently to force the body into ketosis, thereby starting the process of burning fat for energy instead of carbohydrates. More advanced keto dieters use the strips to help figure out exactly how many carbohydrates they can eat before they are kicked out of ketosis. It can also help determine how different foods affect one’s ability to stay in ketosis. For example, some people’s bodies can handle sugar alcohols without having trouble staying in ketosis, and Ketostix can help diagnose this. Psychological Motivation: Quite simply, it feels great seeing Ketostix turn purple. It’s a little bit of positive reinforcement that those of us on keto diets sometimes require to keep us motivated. It might seem stupid to some, but committing to a ketogenic diet is no Continue reading >>
