Drinking water with MiO was a daily occurrence and since starting the keto diet I started wondering if I could continue to drink MiO like I used to.
Is MiO keto friendly? MiO is keto-friendly, but it may not be the best for everyone because MiO still contains a sugar substitute that may make it unhealthy.
When looking for something that tastes good and has zero carbs MiO be the perfect option, but before you start squeezing bottle after bottle of MiO into your water, you may want to read the rest of my findings to see if it is right for you on the keto diet.
Will MiO Kick Me Out of Ketosis?
I know I’m not the only one that finds it hard to drink plain old water every day, especially while on the keto diet, so I went searching for something to help with this problem. Enter the water flavor enhancer named MiO.
Drinking water would never be the same for me, but I have been told that MiO was not ok to drink so frequently on the keto diet because it was so sweet. By the time I heard this I began my research.
A few key questions can answer whether or not MiO is keto friendly and if it kicks you out of ketosis. Here are those questions and answers.
Is MiO Low Carb?
I first went to the back of the nutrition label and wanted to know what the carb count was, and that crossed that off. MiO has zero carbs which makes it low carb friendly.
Does MiO Affect Insulin Levels?
Next question revolves around whether or not it would spike insulin levels. This all came down to the sweetening ingredient. Most people think that something with 0 carbs won’t affect blood sugar levels, but this is not the case.
MiO is sweetened with a sugar substitute that has been proven in studies that it won’t affect insulin levels when consumed. Luckily MiO chose a sugar substitute that will not affect insulin levels. More on how MiO is sweetened will be covered later in this article.
So… Is MiO Keto Friendly?
After looking at all of the factors I have determined that yes, MiO is keto friendly.
What’s in a Bottle of MiO?
This little bottle combines water, citric acid, gum arabic, sodium citrate, sucralose, less than 2% of natural flavor, sucrose, acetate isobutyrate, potassium sorbate, food coloring.
What does this mean? I will break down the ingredients as short and sweet as possible and let you know what is used as the sweetener in MiO.
MiO Water Enhancer Ingredients
You can find the MiO ingredients below with detailed descriptions to give you more information.
Water
This is pretty self-explanatory and allows for MiO to have a bit more volume.
Is water keto friendly? This seems like a crazy question, but I have been asked this and have seen it asked on other forums. To make this clear, water is keto friendly and is essential to the keto diet.
Citric Acid
This is used as a flavor enhancer and as a preservative. Citric acid can be found naturally in fruits, and most citrus fruits.
Is citric acid keto friendly? It shouldn’t knock you out of ketosis, so yes.
Gum Arabic
“It has been considered as a safe dietary fiber by the United States, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) since the 1970s.” Gum arabic is a plant-derived fiber found in many other foods. It can act as a binder for other ingredients in MiO.
Is gum arabic keto friendly? Yes, gum arabic ok to consume on the keto diet.
Sodium Citrate
This is the sodium salt of citric acid previously covered. This is also used for flavoring and as a preservative agent.
Is sodium citrate keto friendly? It is not a problem to consume on the keto diet.
Sucralose
This is used as a sweetener for MiO. Sucralose is not a natural sweetener, but the good news is that it won’t knock you out of ketosis.
Is sucralose keto friendly? I would say yes it is safe for keto.
Less Than 2% Natural Flavor
I’ve always wondered what this meant on the nutrition label. Luckily I found a great article that explains what this means in detail. You can find it here. In MiO’s case, this ingredient should not have an effect on staying in ketosis.
Sucrose Acetate Isobutyrate
This ingredient helps distribute the flavor throughout the drink. This ingredient is not a loved one from the health community, and there are trace amounts of sucrose(as seen in the name), but this won’t affect the average person on keto.
Is sucrose acetate isobutyrate keto friendly? In moderation and normal circumstances, it is ok to have on the keto diet. It is derived from cane sugar but is generally found in smaller quantities that won’t have a large effect on you.
Potassium Sorbate
This is used as a preservative. It is used to prevent bacterial growth, and it is usually used in very small amounts.
Is potassium sorbate keto-friendly? Yes, it is.
Food Coloring
This is only used to make the flavor resemble the flavor of the MiO bottle.
Is food coloring keto friendly? There aren’t any carbs and doesn’t have an effect on insulin levels so it is safe for keto.
MiO Nutrition Facts
This won’t take too long. There isn’t much to the nutrition label since it is almost all 0. Here are the nutrition facts that matter most while practicing the ketogenic diet.
Calories |
0 |
Fat |
0 |
Carbs |
0 |
Protein |
0 |
MiO Nutrition Label
How Many Different Flavors Does MiO Have?
There are four different types of MiO. Each type has its own list of flavors. You can find the 4 different types and the flavors they make for each of them below.
MiO Original Flavors
- Strawberry Watermelon
- Fruit Punch
- Lemonade
- Berry Grape
- Berry Pomegranate
- Cranberry Raspberry
- Sweet Tea
- Blueberry Lemonade
- Mango Peach
- Cherry Blackberry
MiO Energy Flavors
- Wicked Blue Citrus
- Black Cherry
- Tropical Fusion
- Green Thunder
- Strawberry Pineapple Smash
- Acai Berry Storm
MiO Flavors Made with Coffee:
- Iced Vanilla Java
- Iced Mocha Java
MiO Vitamins Flavors
- Orange Tangerine
- Orchard Apple
- Orange Vanilla
MiO Naturally Sweetened:
- Blackberry Raspberry
- Tropical Cherry
MiO Electrolytes Flavors
- Berry Blast
- Arctic Blast
- Lemon Lime
- Orange
Is MiO coming out with new flavors?
According to Mio.com: When it comes to cool flavor ideas, our cup runneth over. We are constantly exploring new options and plan to expand upon our ever-growing flavor lineup in the near future.
Is MiO the Best Water Enhancer for the Keto Diet?
This comes down to preference and opinion. I am happy to share my opinion, but take it how you want it.
I think that MiO does what it intends to do, add a flavor to water, and they are pretty good at it. There are others out there and I have tried the likes of them, but nothing has compared to MiO as of yet. I will continue to try alternatives to MiO, but for now, MiO sits at the top of my list for flavor enhancers for the keto diet.
WHERE CAN YOU BUY MIO?
Mio has become widely popular and can be found in just about any supermarket, grocery store, or online. You can buy single Mio bottles or you can buy packs of them. I would suggest buying am an assortment of flavors until you find the particular flavor you love.
Are All Types of MiO Keto Friendly?
MiO has so many flavors and this comes with so many questions to whether or not each flavor of MiO is keto friendly. All of the 27+ flavors fit into one of four categories below.
Putting them into these 4 categories will help us better answer the question of whether or not they are keto friendly.
- Is MiO Energy Keto Friendly? Yes
- Is MiO Vitamins Keto Friendly? Yes
- Is MiO Electrolytes Keto Friendly? Yes
- Is MiO Original Keto Friendly? Yes
Alternatives to MiO
Flavor enhancement products are on the rise, so MiO may have a run for its money. Here are some of the alternatives to MiO currently out there. They may not all be keto friendly so beware.
Keto Friendly Water Enhancers Alternatives
- Stur Liquid Water Enhancer
Water Enhancer Alternatives That Are Not Keto Friendly
- Celsius On The Go Packets
- DripDrop Hydration Powder
- Crystal Light On the Go
- True Citrus
- True Lemon
- Nuun
Related Questions
Can you use MiO in carbonated water? If you want to get a bit fancy and add some bubbles to your drink without the sugars and carbs found in normal sodas, you can use flavor enhancers such as MiO to make it taste more pleasant and sweet without worrying about knocking yourself out of ketosis. You can absolutely use MiO with carbonated water.
Can MiO make you gain weight? Drinking Mio will not make you gain weight. It can, however, make you crave more sweet things and therefore binge on sweet foods that can make you gain weight, but drinking MiO won’t make you gain weight.
Can you have MiO while fasting? You can not have MiO while fasting, unfortunately. If you trying to fast for the first time, you may want to use it to help train yourself to not eat food during your fast, but technically you do not want to drink anything but water, plain tea with zero additives, or a few other options, but MiO is not one of them. I would recommend staying away from MiO if you are fasting.
Is MiO unhealthy/dangerous for you? No. It actually adds extra nutrients to your drink. But always remember that too much of something is not a smart idea, so don’t have too much MiO because there haven’t been long term studies on its side effects.
Does MiO have sugar or carbs? No it does not have any sugar or carbs and this is what makes it appealing to keto dieters and dieters all around.