What knocks you out of Keto or stalls you (malitol for me for sure)

Hello there, I am not on low carbs, but found this thought I would share with you. Written or reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Board.

Occasionally, someone will ask why their low-carb diet isn’t working as they think it should be. One of the first questions I ask is whether they are eating products with a lot of sugar alcohols such as maltitol. Although it doesn’t have the same impact on every individual, this one ingredient has been known to stall many a well-intentioned dieter. Here’s why.

What is Maltitol?

Maltitol is a sugar alcohol, an ingredient commonly used in low-carb or “sugar-free” products such as candy and nutrition bars.

It is used so much because of its similarity to sugar in terms of taste, mouth feel, and interaction with other ingredients. Products which use maltitol and other sugar alcohols as sweeteners can be called “sugar free.” Although claims are often made that maltitol has little impact on blood sugar, this turns out not to be the case.

Maltitol Has Carbs

Maltitol is a carbohydrate. Although our bodies do not absorb all the calories in maltitol, this substance does provide us with 2 to 3 calories per gram, compared to the 4 calories per gram of sugar. (For what its worth, I have noticed that the claim of 2 calories per gram usually comes from literature provided by the manufacturer or the low calorie food industry whereas other analyses tend to be closer to 3 calories.) Since maltitol is a carbohydrate, and since it provides calories, you would expect it to impact blood glucose. You would be correct.

Maltitol Has a Relatively High Glycemic Index

In particular, maltitol syrup has a glycemic index of 52, which approaches that of table sugar at 60.

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The powdered form has a glycemic index of 36, which is still higher than most other sugar alcohols and all artificial sweeteners.

Maltitol is Not as Sweet As Sugar

Estimates run from 75% to 90% of the sweetness of sugar. Again, the information provided by industry groups tends to give the 90% figure, while other sources say 75%. So, if maltitol has ¾ of the sweetness of sugar, ¾ the calories of sugar, and ¾ the glycemic index of sugar, it isn’t a far leap to the conclusion that you need ¼ more maltitol to get the same effect of sugar, which will give you close to the same effect in most other ways (except for dental cavities). You are basically getting expensive sugar. And…a bonus:

Maltitol can Cause Intestinal Discomfort

Usually this takes the form of intestinal gas and cramping, but some people may find themselves with diarrhea. If you decide to eat products with maltitol, you’d be wise to start with a small amount and judge the reaction -- as well whether you’ll be in a crowded room a few hours later.

Alternatives to Maltitol

The best alternatives to products with maltitol are usually made with erythritol, often in combination with artificial sweeteners such as sucralose (Splenda). But almost any other sugar alcohol is at least a little better than maltitol (see chart at the bottom of this article about sugar alcohols.

I cant speak on maltitol, but I can on the keto urine strips. The strips will only be "somewhat" useful for the first 2-3 weeks as the body excretes "excess" ketones. After that time the strips become useless because the body adjusts and no longer makes extra ketone bodies. You can quite possibly still be in a ketosis state if you kept net carbs low.
The only real way to check your levels is with a glucometer using ketone strip.
Most of yout weight loss could possibly have been simply water weight.
Try reducin calories another 100-200 for 2-3 weeks and see if you drop.
Women especially fluctuate water weight and can often times appear to stall over 2-3 weeks but still be losing fat although the scale doesnt move, a good thing to do is body measurements and pictures to track progress rather than relying on the scale exclusively.

With all that being said, you dont "have" to be in ketosis to lose fat. I was at 20g carbs a day but was only at .3 or .4 on the glucometer ( optimal ketosis is 1.5-3 or so) and still lost 35lbs of fat.
Tighten up your logging and ensure you're in a calorie deficit and fat will come off