I'm confused. Is cheese ok on keto?

I have been eating keto with cheese and done fine. I have lost 53 lbs in 6 months and feel great while eating as much cheese as I want. Cheese is ok for me and doesn’t trigger me to eat it non stop. I just add it to my salads and put some on top of my chicken and make a cheese crisp once in a while. I only know that by trying it and seeing what happened. I do stay under 20 carbs a day and only eat 1 meal and a snack a day.

One thing about keto eating is that it is individual and you have to test and see about a lot of things. I can not have any MSG or it triggers hunger and headaches. Other people can eat it and not even notice it. Leaving something out that might be an issue and then adding it back a little bit at a time and see how your body reacts is one of the best things I learned by doing the Whole 30 a couple of years ago. Eat only when hungry and stop when satiated is one of my favorite things about keto. If you keep your carbs under 20 it makes it easy not to over eat.

You can get your body into ketosis while eating cheese.  But you could also get your body into ketosis while eating a lot of different processed foods (vegetable oils, “low-carb” bars, etc.).

That’s why there’s a lot of confusion.  Many people will promote keto diets that focus only on getting your body into ketosis.  And you might get some benefits from that (or not).

But truthfully, you’re going to see the best results if you also focus on food quality.  Cheese isn’t the worst thing you can eat, but MANY people have inflammatory reactions (sinus issues, acne, stiff joints, arthritis, etc.) even from eating just a little bit of cheese.

And what jamiev said is also correct – cheese and most other dairy is very easy to overeat, so if you’re trying to lose weight, it’s definitely best to avoid it all.

I eat cheese in moderation and have stayed in ketosis and I’m loosing weight.

I am super sensitive to MSG too, lisafern. It can even trigger seizures. I think the mistake a lot of people make with dairy products in general is eating crappy quality processed stuff like Kraft Orange Goo. It may not have been the dairy itself that was the issue for a person, it may have been all the fake colors, chemicals, hormones, etc.

You’re right that The Whole30 is a really good method for figuring out what your personal sensitivities are or aren’t.

I’ve been doing LC and now keto for quite a long while. Long enough to finally heal my leaky gut. My keto diet now includes not only cheese but lots of dairy products, especially sour cream. I am down 35 pounds with just mild efforts, since November. I lost all through the holidays which was a first for me!!! It wasn’t difficult with all the rich dishes I was able to make to keep me away from all the traditional carbs.

Like so many other things, all cheese is not the same, and it’s a gross generalization to categorically rule out this potentially perfect keto-friendly food. An organic French Brie (etc) is much different than standard American highly processed alternatives. A friend who moved here from France initially lamented not having access to the cheeses (and other natural foods) from his homeland, but shared with me that Costco frequently has very high quality organic french cheeses, so that’s about all we buy anymore. Hope this helps.

Cheese is one of my “go to” foods.

I carry it wherever I go with many other foods that I eat on the Keto program. I try to eat organic as much as I can. I am in my 9th month on keto. I’m very often not at home, more than likely on the road or in a restaurant.  I like to bite a small piece of cheese to fill the gap when I’m hungry and find it to be more satisfying than most other foods. It really hasn’t given me any problems with reactions mentioned. Also, have had no trouble staying in ketosis. If you cut it up and keep in small zip lock bags it’s much easier to control the amount you consume than if you keep it in a block. My other “go to” food is avocado.

My emphasis is on Cancer prevention and eradicating diabetes so I never weighed in, but I’ve lost 5 jeans sizes in the process

MissyL

I was on Paleo for the last 5 years due to thyroid issues & Celiac disease (which in my case comes with partial lactose intolerance) so keto for me was mainly switching protein intake for fat.

That said, I always ate cheese on Paleo, and continue to on keto – but stick with Imported cheeses only (mainly Kerrygold). Cheeses made in America are processed differently and who knows what the cows are fed.

While local organic cheeses are an ok choice, organic/ grass-fed/ imported cheeses are your best choice. and the cost of them keeps you from eating too much !!

I’ve had success staying in ketosis while keeping cheese as part of my diet.  As other people have commented – avoid the processed stuff.  And sometimes it’s hard to tell if cheese is processed – best to assume it is.  My blood markers have stayed good in the year+ I’ve been (mostly) eating ketogenic. But if something changes, like LDL, cheese is going to be the first thing to reduce or eliminate.

Does this help?

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