Did you know that there are different types of the keto diet? Yes, while the keto diet generally focuses on eating high-fat and low-carb, there’s a clean and dirty way to do it. You can argue that there’s a right way and a wrong way to be keto. On the keto diet your body will burn fat for fuel and energy rather than glucose, which is called “ketosis.” To reach ketosis, you have to be pretty consistent in eating very high-fat, very-low carb and with moderate protein. Ketosis is where weight loss happens and why the keto diet is so popular. But how are you reaching ketosis? And with what foods? Let’s talk about clean and dirty keto.

If you’re living a clean keto lifestyle, you’re focusing on eating real, nutritious whole foods and minimizing the processed junk. You’re more than likely sourcing your fat from animal fat (think bacon, fatty steaks, beef tallow, duck fat etc), coconut oil, ghee, grass-fed butter, clean oils and avocados while incorporating green veggies and protein coming from high quality meats.

If you’re focusing solely on the macros and net carb count without taking into account the ingredients, that can lead to a dirty keto lifestyle. This can be harmful to your internal health in the long run, leading to gut health issues, inflammation and other chronic conditions. The problem comes when your siloed focus on macros leads to choosing unhealthy foods like inflammatory oils (like canola) and processed foods that hide sugars, carbs, food coloring and dangerous preservatives behind the "keto" stamp. There’s a higher emphasis on eating keto for weight loss and weight loss alone vs eating keto for your overall health, wellness and brain function. 

When I started Real Phat Foods, I carefully chose each ingredient so that our products would fit in with a clean keto lifestyle, all while remaining delicious and helpful for anyone living a low-carb life. While anyone and everyone can enjoy our yummy, clean ingredient crackers as they aren’t just for someone who eats lower in carbs, when I researched the snack products available on the market,  there wasn’t any options that I felt comfortable feeding my kids or eating myself. That’s why I created our Phat Crackers… convenient, still keto-friendly, totally clean, nutrient dense ingredients and easily fits in with a clean keto lifestyle. Plus, I feel more than confident to not only feed them to my kid (they also devour them), but I’m more than proud to have created a healthy option for all to enjoy. 

November is National Diabetes Month, a time when communities across America come together to bring attention and awareness to diabetes. For the millions of people living with diabetes, it’s a chance for them to share their stories and give others an insight into what life with diabetes is really like and the 24/7 work it takes to effectively manage this chronic illness. 

We are humbled and honored to introduce you to Amanda and Lukas. We are in awe of these two heroes.