Are vegetables necessary on a ketogenic diet?
By Dr. Stephen Phinney and the Virta Team
In addition to getting fiber, there are many other reasons to consume vegetables. The emphasis on non-starchy vegetables on a well-formulated ketogenic diet is for mineral balance as well as a vehicle for both salt and fat. If one finds that vegetables are not regularly part of a daily routine, a multivitamin would help, but there would still be concerns about adequate potassium and magnesium. For that, homemade bone broth can help fill the gap.
Here are some vegetable recipes you can try.
Back to Keto FAQ
Related blog posts







I have been on a Nutritional Ketosis lifestyle consistently for over one and a half year. Lost weight about 37 lbs in addition to completion of earlier weight loss on a medically supervised program. I began Nutritional Ketosis November , 2017 continuing to this moment : ) and feel great , lots of energy and all of my biomarkers are within normal limits except Hgba1c is 5.7 and has been for about 10 years ( I reviewed previous lab results ) and my PTH is 77 whereas reference range cited is 15 – 65. In the past my PTH was 26 on 2.7.17 and 48 on 3.5.18. Do you have information which maybe helpful in my understanding of this . Iam a 72 year old Black American female . Thank you for your attention. I have already read your article related to whether or not we need carbs for our thyroid function. Thank you.
Hi Elizabeth. Thank you for reaching out, unfortunately, we aren’t able to provide specific medical advice via this forum. You may want to consider working with a functional medicine physician to address your questions regarding your thyroid function.
Is there such a thing as eating too many vegetables?
Great question! It depends on your individual response (what happens to your blood sugar control) when you are consuming those vegetables as well as the source (i.e. Are they starchy like peas and carrots or non-starchy like leafy greens and brussel sprouts?).