Crystal light has got to be one of the oldest "low-calorie" water enhancers, at least that I can remember. Eventually, I was so tired of drinking plain water and was looking for ways to make it more palatable, In comes crystal light.
I wasn't keto at the time this was happening, but eventually, when I made the jump, I wondered if I could still consume crystal lite while following a ketogenic diet.
Flavoring water with Crystal Light is ok while following a keto diet and shouldn't disrupt ketosis if drank in moderate amounts. Each Crystal Light flavor is low or no calories and ranges between 0 and 3 grams of net carbs per serving, making it perfectly ok on a ketogenic diet.
Purchase crystal light variety pack here
In this article, I'll go over all of the different crystal light products, what's in them, if they're good for you, how they may or may not break a fast, and other popular alternatives.
Can You Have Crystal Light Packets While On A Keto Diet
I get it; water can be boring sometimes. It's a good thing we live in an age where we have multiple choices to resolve that problem, one of them being crystal light.
Back when I started drinking crystal light, they had served them in multi-serve canisters that you would peel open and pour into your water. Now, you can get convenient single-serve "on the go" packets to quickly pour in a bottle of water.
Will crystal light kick you out of ketosis? Crystal light will not kick you out of ketosis.
For the most part, the only way to be kicked out of ketosis would be to consume too many carbohydrates over some time, crystal light has very few if any.
If you've been kicked out of ketosis and wondering if it's the crystal light you're drinking, chances are it's something else in your diet that you have to troubleshoot.
How Many Carbs Are In Crystal Light
As of writing this, crystal light has four distinct product lines.
Those are:
Crystal Light Classics
Crystal Light Tea
Crystal Light with Caffeine
Crystal Light Pure
The carbs vary depending on the specific product line and flavor, below is a table that illustrates all of crystal lights different products and their carb counts.
In general, most crystal light products contain 0 – 3g of net carbs per packet. Each given net carb listed below is net carbs per packet of the given crystal light flavor.
Of course, crystal light makes slight changes here and there, so please also double-check the nutrition label to make sure it is accurate.
I do my best to keep these tables updated with current information, but sometimes they may be off if the formulation has been modified.
Classics
Net Carbs
Berry Sangria
0g
Black Cherry Lime
0g
Tropical Coconut
0g
Strawberry Watermelon
3g
Blackberry Lemonade
0g
Blueberry Raspberry
0g
Cherry Pomegranate
3g
Concord Grape
3g
Fruit Punch
3g
Lemonade
3g
Mango Passionfruit
0g
Orange
3g
Pink Lemonade
3g
Pomegranate Lemonade
0g
Raspberry Ice
3g
Raspberry Lemonade
3g
Strawberry Kiwi
3g
Strawberry Lemonade
0g
Strawberry Orange Banana
3g
Tea
Net Carbs
Peach Iced Tea
3g
Peach-Mango Green Tea
3g
Lemon Iced Tea Decaf
3g
Lemon Iced Tea
3g
Pomegranate Green Tea
0g
Raspberry Green Tea
3g
Raspberry Iced Tea
3g
Sweet Tea
3g
w/ Caffeine
Net Carbs
Acai Berry Bliss
0g
Cherry Splash
0g
Citrus
3g
Grape
3g
Peach Mango
3g
Strawberry Pineapple Refresh
0g
Tropical Paradise Punch
0g
Wild Strawberry
3g
Pomegranate
3g
Pure
Net Carbs
Grape
1g
Lemon
1g
Lemon Iced Tea
1g
Mixed Berry Energy
3g
Peach Iced Tea
1g
Raspberry Lemonade
1g
Strawberry Kiwi
1g
Strawberry Lemonade Energy
3g
Tangerine Mango
1g
Tropical Blend
1g
Tropical Citrus Energy
3g
What's In Crystal Light
Below are the ingredient lists for the four different varieties of crystal light products available.
The most common ingredients you'll see in each one are listed below:
Citric Acid
Maltodextrin
Natural Flavors
Artificial Flavors
Food Coloring
Artificial Sweeteners
Citric Acid
Citric acid is naturally found in citrus fruits, though the one found in crystal light is likely a manufactured version. In many food products, it's used as an additive for flavor and preservation.
Maltodextrin
While maltodextrin is technically a source of carbohydrates, it's generally used in products as a filler or thickener to increase volume and shelf life of packed foods.
What is crystal light sweetened with?
Crystal light is sweetened with a combination of sweetness, those being:
Aspartame
Acesulfame potassium
Sucralose *Tea Crystal Light Line
Stevia *Pure Crystal Light Line
Sugar *Pure Crystal Light Line
While individual crystal light packets do have trivial amounts of sugar, it's not enough for one pack to kick you out of ketosis.
Remember, it's the TOTAL amount of carbohydrates over the day that will make the most significant difference.
That said, if enjoying the higher carb varieties of crystal light (~3g carbs), it's best to make sure you're not overdoing it and only using one or two packets.
Purchase crystal light variety pack here
It's still best that you fill your carbs with nutritious and filling sources, such as green leafy vegetables. Although fitting in a packet of crystal light, even the higher carb varieties, are perfectly acceptable within moderation.
Is Crystal Light Good For You?
Many people question whether products like crystal light is good for you, and to give you the truth…
There is no real right answer.
Some people swear off certain ingredients and sugar-free sweeteners, and some are against the use of food colorings in their food, so it all just comes down to whether you react or have an aversion against certain ingredients.
Scientifically speaking, all the ingredients in crystal light have been tested and proven safe, thus approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) for consumption.
When it comes to the sugar-free sweetener aspartame, it has the most extensive amount of studies to back its safety for human consumption.
That being said, aspartame has been demonized by certain people and organizations without anything to back up their claims.1https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/289387972https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/178286713https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC520987/
How much aspartame is safe?
The recommended safe dose of aspartame is set at 40mg/kg/day.
To put that into perspective, if you were a 180lb man, you would have an upper safety limit of 3,240mg per day.
A can of diet soda has ~180mg of aspartame. Thus you would need to consume more than 18 cans of diet soda to reach the recommended safe dose.
Is Crystal Light Good For Diabetics?
Crystal light makes for a great alternative to sugar-filled soft drinks and juices since they are artificially sweetened and contain very minimal if any amount of carbohydrates.
The sugar-free sweetness in crystal light, aspartame, ace-K, stevia, and Sucralose all have a glycemic index of 0, so they don't pose an impact on blood sugar.
Crystal Light or other sugar-free beverages are often recommended to those who have type 2 diabetes as a better alternative to their sugar-filled counterparts.
Can You Have Crystal Light While Intermittent Fasting
If you've been doing keto for any considerable amount of time, you may be starting to experiment with intermittent fasting or even multiple day fasts.
Can you have crystal light during your fasting window? That would depend on the purpose of your fast.
If you are fasting for the reported health benefits like autophagy, then it's probably best that you stick with plain water during your fast.
However, if your goal is FAT LOSS, then drinking some crystal light during your fast window will have very little to no effect, and that's because it's your overall caloric intake at the end of the day that matters most. 4https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6304782/
Assuming crystal light doesn't lead you to eat more food over the day, there will be no noticeable difference in fat loss if you drink crystal light during your fasting window or not.
So drink up.
Other Keto Friendly Water Enhancers
Are you looking for other keto drink besides water? Here are a few ideas down below to quench your thirst while following a ketogenic diet.
Store-bought:
Mio Water
Propel Fitness Water
Diet Coke
Sugar-Free Energy Drinks
Electrolyte Enhanced
Keto Vitals Electrolyte Powder
LMNT Recharge
Zip Fizz
The Takeaway
Crystal light beverages are keto friendly and range between 0 and 3 grams of net carbs per packet.
Purchase crystal light variety pack here
If you're planning to enjoy some crystal light, make sure you don't overdo it, especially if you drink some of the higher carb flavors that they offer.
To take up your keto diet a notch, I'd recommend using the water enhancers I listed above that also have a sufficient amount of electrolytes.
Not only will you be able to flavor your water with these products, but you'll consuming essential minerals that will help keep you hydrated and avoid side effects like the keto flu.
When it comes down to it, if it's the only way to get you to consume enough fluids and stay hydrated, I'm all for water enhancers.
