Do women need more carbs on Keto and Intermittent Fasting?

A lot of women ask because when they eat carbohydrates, they feel better. You might be one of them. So it seems logical to conclude you need carbs. When you’re intermittent fasting but not yet keto-adapted, and your blood sugar drops, your brain function takes a hit. You may feel moody, irritable, and have brain fog. Then you eat carbs, and you feel so much better.

But what’s really going on is that your body isn’t responding to insulin correctly. You have insulin resistance. In response, your pancreas makes several times more insulin than is healthy. The combination of high insulin and intermittent fasting crashes your blood sugar, and you feel terrible.

The solution is to fix the insulin resistance and get your insulin levels normal, not eat more carbs. You heal insulin resistance by keeping carbs low, and by fasting. Once you fully adapt to fat for fuel, your brain will no longer need carbohydrates to function well.

It takes time to teach your body to burn fat and be in ketosis. Eating certain foods and easing into intermittent fasting will help you feel better. Give your brain time to adapt to fat burning. If you still get symptoms like brain fog and irritability, add more protein instead of carbohydrates.

My answer is no, women don’t need more carbs on keto and intermittent fasting. You just need to fully understand what’s happening within your body. Then move gradually into the keto diet and intermittent fasting.