Low Carb Bread Substitutes for a Keto Diet

For many people, one of the hardest things about switching to the Keto Diet is giving up bread. From pizza crusts to freshly baked loaves spread with olive oil and cream cheese, bread is one of the staples of a wide variety of cultural cuisines from around the world. Today, unfortunately, the richness of the wide variety of breads has collapsed into the cheap loaf of white bread at the supermarket, which is essentially a source of empty carbohydrates with little to no nutritional value.

What is Wrong with Bread?

While thousands of people are turning away from bread due to the increased interest in gluten-free diets and due to the apparently increasing prevalence of Celiac Disease¹, bread is also one of the main culprits of high carbohydrate intake and the numerous health risks associated with this type of diet.

The two slices of bread that make up your sandwich for lunch most likely contain anywhere between 30 to 40 grams of carbohydrates and absolutely no protein. A diet that is high in carbohydrates has been shown to lead to several different health problems including an increased risk for heart disease, higher cholesterol, high blood sugar, among other health issues. With the obesity crisis in the United States approaching epidemic levels, diets lower in carbohydrates (meaning less bread, among other things) have also been shown to be effective in weight loss strategies².

Is There a Healthy Substitute for Bread?

For people wanting to substantially lower their carbohydrate intake, removing bread from their diet (especially white bread made from nutrition-empty refined flour) is an important first step. That does not necessarily mean that you have to give up sandwiches, spaghetti, and other delicious bread and flour based recipes that have become an essential part of our diet.

While several prominent low carb diets promote switching wheat-based products for vegetables (such as swapping lasagna noodles for slices of eggplant), the Keto Diet aims to strictly limit carbs in all their forms. Several different types of vegetables also tend to be high in carbs (like eggplant, for example).

Almond Bread is one Keto-friendly bread alternative that will allow you to enjoy a sandwich without taking on the carbs. Almond flour has an extremely low amount of carbohydrates while also being gluten free. It is high in fiber and protein while also constituting a major source of several essential vitamins and minerals including iron, calcium, potassium and Vitamin E.

Another Keto Diet-friendly alternative bread recipe is known as “Cloud bread” or “Oopsie Bread”. This bread recipe can be used for everything from dinner rolls to pizza crusts. Since cream cheese is one of the main ingredients, it can also be used for sweets.

You can find a few recipes for making other keto friendly bread substitutes here³ and here⁴.

Dr. Rosmy Barrios, MD

This article has been medically reviewed by Dr. Rosmy Barrios, MD.

Dr. Rosmy Barrios, MD is an aesthetic medicine specialist whose work focuses on patients who are treated for obesity, metabolic syndrome, and other weight-related issues through nutritional analysis, keto diet programs, and supporting medications.

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Tobias Roberts

Tobias lives in the mountains of El Salvador where he and his family run a small, diversified permaculture farm and eco-tourism cooperative. When not weeding the quinoa field or picking peaches, he enjoys writing about sustainable lifestyles, permaculture, and agroecology.

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