Low carb diet plans work to reduce your waistline and pull off pounds, but offer relatively few sweet indulgences. With a bit of careful shopping, you can find ice cream choices that fit into your low carb lifestyle. These ice creams cut the sugar, but not the fat and calories, so they might not be appropriate for some fat-controlled, low carb diet plans.
Regular Ice Cream
Regular, full-sugar varieties of ice cream typically contain around 178 calories, 12 g of fat and 15.5 g of carbs in a 1/2 cup serving. If you're aiming for around 20 g of net carbs, or carbs minus fiber and any sugar alcohols, per day, as you would during the ongoing weight-loss phase of the Atkins diet, a single serving of full-sugar ice cream would leave you with very little room for vegetables and fruit in your day.
Low Carb Ice Cream
Low carb ice creams are produced by many different companies. These ice creams rely on various strategies to cut net carbs while preserving flavor and texture. Some ice creams might use heavy cream, while others opt for a lower-fat combination of milk and skim milk, with additional fiber added to reduce net carbs. Breyer's CarbSmart ice cream keeps fat, calories and carbs under control, with 90 calories, 6 g of fat and 4 g of net carbs per half-cup serving. This ice cream is ideal as a treat for low carb diets.
Homemade Options
Many homemade low-carb ice creams aren't ice creams at all. You can combine 1 cup of heavy cream, a 1/2 cup of an artificial sweetener such as sucralose, and 2 tbsp. of whole-milk ricotta cheese in a mixer and whip until stiff peaks form. Scoop and freeze for a creamy treat. If you're on a low fat and low carb diet plan, try peeling and freezing bananas, then processing them in your blender or food processor. Add 2 tbsp. of cocoa powder per banana or a small spoonful of all-natural peanut butter.
Warnings
Unfortunately, what makes many low carb sweets tasty and delicious are sugar alcohols, which are not calorie-free, but do have about half the calories of sugar and have a reduced effect on blood sugar. When calculating net carbs, you can subtract sugar alcohols, such as sorbitol or xylitol, from the total carb count. Sugar alcohols come with a big drawback for many people, however, as they can produce significant gastro-intestinal side effects, including gas and diarrhea.
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