Is American Cheese Keto? Let’s have a look. With around 2 grams of net carbs per slice, it can be incorporated into a keto diet. However, if you want to find a low carb or zero carb alternative to American cheese, we’ve lined up some great options for you.
- What is American cheese?
- What is the nutritional value of American cheese?
- How many net carbs are there in a slice of American cheese?
- Is American Cheese Keto?
- Are there any exceptions?
- What are the best keto alternatives to American cheese?
- What are the worse alternatives to American cheese?
- Summary: Is American Cheese Keto?
- A Keto-Cap (aka A Keto Recap!)
What is American cheese?
American cheese became popular when a cheesemaker took all of his leftover cheese and combined them to make what would become American cheese. It is a type of processed cheese developed in the 1910s made from cheddar, Colby, or similar cheeses, whatever is available.
A Keto-Cap (aka A Keto Recap!)
If you’re new to keto and want a bit more information, check out our keto beginners guide.
As a quick summary, if you need it, the keto (also known as the ketogenic diet) is a low-carb, high-fat diet.
The whole concept of the keto diet is that your body transitions from burning glucose, in simple terms, sugars or carbohydrates, to burning fat as its primary fuel source.
For a keto diet, people will restrict their macros to eating;
- 70% of their calories from fat
- 25% from protein
- 5% from carbohydrates
Sticking to these macros for a period of time will put your body into a state of ketosis. Ketosis is when your body has transitioned from burning carbohydrates as its primary fuel source to burning fat for fuel. It is at this point that you will start to see and feel the benefits of the keto diet.
There are a lot of new terms and abbreviations that you may come across, sometimes it can feel like a new language that you need to learn. In order to help you out and keep you on the right track, we have created a keto terms and keto abbreviations guide, bookmark these to make your keto journey easier.
Some people can be put off the keto diet because of the side effects, however, these are only short-lived and the health benefits of keto far outweigh the side effects.
One of the main benefits which attract people to the keto diet is that it can cause significant reductions in insulin levels (by up to 75%) and blood sugar levels, which can be attractive to those that struggle with diabetes, amongst other health complaints.
What is the nutritional value of American cheese?
On average, the nutritional value of a single slice of 1 oz cheese would be like the following:
- Carbs: 1.97 g
- Protein: 5.37 g
- Fat: 7.39 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Sugar: 1.83 g
- Calories: 96
How many net carbs are there in a slice of American cheese?
To calculate the net carbs, you need to subtract the total fiber from the total carbs.
- Net carbs=Carbs-fiber
In this instance, you would calculate as follows:
- Net carbs (x) = Carbs (1.97) – Fiber (0)
- So 1.97 – 0 = 1.97
This means that one slice of cheese has 1.97 grams of net carbs on average.
Is American Cheese Keto?
The net carbs in American Cheese are on average 2 grams, while that doesn’t seem substantial, there are so many other options that have as little as 0.2 grams in a single slice.
There are other options that wouldn’t have as many net carbs, but if you’re dying to have that slice of cheese on your burger, count it towards your carb goal and enjoy.
Are there any exceptions?
Of course, with dietary needs such as gluten-free or keto friendly have become more available in supermarkets, there will also be brands to make specific products to replicate the one you’re missing. You can buy more keto-friendly American cheese.
One exception is Horizon Organic Organic American Singles. These American cheese slices only have 1 net carb.
There are going to be exceptions to the rule, but the average American slice has 2 net carbs.
What are the best keto alternatives to American cheese?
American cheese is usually higher in net carbs than some of the alternatives, but there are exceptions.
If you’re interested in eliminating your carb intake from cheese, you’ll be happy to know that goat cheese contains zero carbs.
Halloumi cheese is no carb.
Gruyere cheese is also carb-free.
Swiss cheese is a zero-carb cheese.
Blue cheese is low carb, cream cheese is low carb and high fat, 1 tablespoon of parmesan cheese has less than 0.7 g of carbs, cheese crisps also have low carbs.
Mozerella is also low carb at 1 g per ounce.
Brie has a low carb average of 0.1 g and a high-fat content per ounce.
What are the worse alternatives to American cheese?
While American cheese isn’t the best option for someone on a keto diet, there are worse alternatives.
Ricotta cheese has 9 g of carbs in ½ cup. Cottage cheese has 4.5 g of carbs in ½ cup serving on average.
Staying hydrated on the keto diet is really important, for more on how much water you should be drinking, check out our guide to staying hydrated on the keto diet.
If you’re planning on dehydrating yourself(!) and drinking alcohol on the keto diet, check out our ultimate guide to drinking alcohol on a keto diet. Also, you may be interested in, how to recover from a cheat day.
Summary: Is American Cheese Keto?
In short, yes American Cheese is keto, however, at 2 grams of net carbs per slice, you may want to limit your intake of this. However, if the carb count of this cheese puts you off, we have some fantastic low and no carb alternatives available for you.
