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So, you’ve been on the keto diet for a while and the results have been outstanding. Now you want to start passing on those good eating habits to your offspring. But, you need to find some keto snacks for kids specifically.

Or, maybe you are just starting the keto diet yourself and the only way it will work is if your entire household is a keto household.

Or… maybe you just want to use your child as a keto guinea pig to see if it really works. (No judgment!)

In any case, it’s not a problem! Plenty of companies offer awesome keto snacks for kids. These snacks are low in sugar and carbohydrates and are developed with kids’ taste buds in mind.

keto school lunch bag

But first, some thoughts on the Keto Diet and Kids

Did you know that the ketogenic diet was developed around 100 years ago to treat epilepsy in children?

The keto diet is effective in reducing seizure frequency in epileptic patients– and with minimal side effects. In fact, this low carb, high fat diet is still a viable treatment option offered today in hundreds of hospitals world-wide.

Let’s be clear, we’re not suggesting keto is only useful if your child has epilepsy. Our point is that the ketogenic diet has proven to be safe for children over an extended period of time. As such, there shouldn’t be any apprehension about providing a lower carbohydrate, higher fat diet to your family.

And, we aren’t here to suggest that you administer a full-blown ketogenic diet either. Instead, let’s focus on how a sustainable lower carb diet may improve the health and well-being of our youth.

Note: If you’ve landed here looking to find foods that fit your child’s ketogenic epilepsy treatment plan, please consult your child’s physician before making any dietary changes.

Let’s focus on how a sustainable lower carb diet may improve the health and well-being of our youth.

What exactly are the health benefits of the keto diet?

Check out this laundry list of potential benefits that may come from practicing a ketogenic diet:

  • Reduces the risk of metabolic diseases like:
    • Type 2 Diabetes
    • Hypertension
    • Blood clotting tendency
    • Chronic Inflammation
  • Promotes weight loss/weight stabilization
  • Lowers abdominal obesity
  • Normalizes blood sugar levels
    • Improves the yo-yo effect of energy levels throughout the day
  • According to the Charlie Foundation, there is more and more research that a ketogenic diet can be beneficial toward fighting various forms of cancer, autism, ALS, Parkinson’s Disease and brain-related trauma.

Our take?

Lowering Sugar Intake

We know sugars play a role in the increased prevalence of childhood obesity and diabetes. At the same time, consumption of sugar is simply not necessary from a dietary perspective.

That means endeavoring to reduce your children’s sugar intake, in any amount, is only going to be beneficial.

[You can find out more about the effects of sugar in Gary Taubes’ The Case Against Sugar]

Kid Eating Cake, Sugar

Lowering Carbohydrate Intake

Sugar isn’t the only carb. Your children can benefit from consuming lower amounts of carbohydrates in general, such as those from bread and grains.

Again, you don’t necessarily have to go all-in putting your kids on keto and adhering to the standard 20g net carbs per day recommendation. Instead, simply striving to swap out their favorite snacks with lower carb, lower sugar alternatives should go a long way in improving your child’s health and dietary habits.

Don’t be scared of fat

The key to sustaining a lower carb diet is by increasing fat intake. It’s actually the key to the original ketogenic diet, which suggests eating 4x as much fat as carbs and protein combined. Like we said previously, you don’t have to go that high (unless a doctor tells you to)!

You’ll see that some of the snacks we list have a higher fat content due to substitutions like using nuts and seeds instead of flour. This is a good thing because if you go low carb and low fat, your child is no doubt going to be left hungry and looking for more.

The thing to remember is that fat keeps us satiated and generally improves the taste of foods–and that’s great for the keto diet. So, let’s embrace fat!

Our List of the Best Keto Snacks For Kids

Our goal is to make it easy as possible for you to find keto-friendly foods for kids. To that end, we’ve compiled a wide-ranging list of all the keto snacks for kids that we know of.

There’s no need to scour Pinterest for kid friendly keto recipes. We’ve already found the best store bought keto snacks for kids. Plus, most of these should make great low carb lunch box ideas for school as well!

Let’s do this!

Low Carb Bread:

SoLo Carb Bread

SoLo Carb bread is a low carb bread that actually tastes and smells like bread. The texture is pretty soft and it toasts and grills up well. We’re not eating cardboard in this household!

But, do note that if you’re family is used to super soft white bread that’s loaded with dough softeners, this stuff will likely be likely be less soft than that.

By switching to a lower carb bread rather than just whole wheat or high fiber, your kid can enjoy low carb kid friendly snacks. That means favorites like low carb PB&J or grilled cheese sandwich.

Just use some SoLo Carb bread (or any other brand on our keto-approved bread list) and add the following add-ons, below.

buy keto bread

For the peanut butter and jelly sandwich, you’ll want to use specific keto-friendly ingredients.

where to buy low carb bread

For a keto grilled cheese sandwich, luckily both butter and cheese are keto friendly. So if you aren’t opposed to dairy, this is a great way to incorporate grass-fed dairy sources with increased omega-3 content into your child’s diet.

Mrs. Baird’s White Bread vs. SoLo Carb Bread

  • Standard:       11g net carbs per slice (Mrs. Baird’s)
  • Alternative:   3g net carbs per slice (SoLo Carb)
  • Difference:    -8g net carbs saved (about 3.5x difference)

Low Carb Jelly:

Good Good Co Jelly

Good Good Co is a low carb jelly that actually tastes just like your traditional sugar enriched jellies but without all the sugar!

They use real fruit (but less of it) and there’s zero added sugar!

  • Sweetened with natural sweeteners (Stevia & Erythritol)
  • Vegan & Vegetarian
  • At least 50% real fruit!

Three Low Carb Jelly Flavors

  • Apricot
    • Ingredients: Apricots (56%), water, sweetener (erythritol, steviol glycosides), gelling agent (pectin), preservatives (potassium sorbate).
    • 1g net carb per tablespoon
  • Blueberry
    • Ingredients: Blueberries (57%), water, sweetener (erythritol, steviol glycosides), gelling agent(pectins), acid (citric acid), preservatives (potassium sorbate), acidity regulator (calcium citrates).
    • 1g net carb per tablespoon
  • Strawberry
    • Ingredients: Strawberries (58%), water, sweetener (erythritol, steviol glycosides), gelling agent (pectins), concentrate (carrot, blackcurrant), acid (citric acid), preservatives (potassium sorbate).
    • 1g net carb per tablespoon

Good Good Co Strawberry Jelly VS Smuckers Strawberry Jelly

  • Standard:       13g net carbs per tablespoon (Smuckers)
  • Alternative:  1g net carbs per tablespoon (Good Good Co)
  • Difference:    -12g net carbs saved (about 13x difference)

Low Sugar Capri Sun Alternative:

Hapi Water

What’s lower than low? How about zero sugar? Hapi Water is a brand of drinks that produces Capri Sun alternatives containing 0g of sugar per pouch.

If your little ones love Capri Suns, then these will be right up their alley. In fact, Hapi Water even has that familiar punch-through-with-a-straw pouch.

Again at 0g net carbs, this takes the concept “kid-tested, mother approved” to the next level.

The waters come in at zero calories and zero sugars and are sweetened with erythritol.

Hapi Water comes in 4 different flavors:

Capri Sun vs. Hapi Water Fruit Punch

  • Standard:       14g net carbs per pouch (Capri Sun)
  • Alternative:   0g net carbs per pouch (Hapi Water)
  • Difference:     -14g net carbs saved (about 14x difference)

Low Carb and Low Sugar Ice Cream:

Enlightened

Yes, there’s lower carb ice cream that can be a part of a keto kid diet!

You probably already know about Halo Top, but Enlightened generally has lower carb counts than Halo Top.

Haagen Dazs Vanilla vs. Enlightened Vanilla Ice Cream

  • Standard:      21g net carbs per 1/2 cup (Haagen Dazs)
  • Alternative:   4g net carb per pouch (Enlightened)
  • Difference:    -17g net carbs saved (about 5x difference)

Want more ice cream options? We’ve actually written up a comprehensive guide to all the keto-friendly ice cream options available.

Low Carb Cereal Alternatives:

 Sola Granola Cereal

Cereal has got to have a great taste and sweetness for most people, adults included. Sola Granola hits all the marks for crunchy texture and the right amount of sweetness.

While the name implies the product is a granola, Sola uses protein crisps to give it a distinctly cereal-like texture. Plus, there are no grains!

We love all of their several great flavors:

  • Maple Pecan Chocolate (3g net carbs)
    • Really great pecan and maple flavor mixed in with some chocolate. Really great flavor profile.
  • Vanilla Almond (2g net carbs)
    • Vanilla flavor shines through here. Lowest carb option and very simple, pleasing taste.
  • Double Chocolate (3g net carbs)
    • Really nice, balanced chocolate flavor and crispy texture. Tastes just like Cocoa Krispies!

Kellogg’s Cocoa Krispies vs. Sola Double Chocolate Granola

  • Standard:       24.5g net carbs per 28g (Cocoa Krispies)
  • Alternative:   3g net carbs per 28g (Sola Granola)
  • Difference:     -21.5g net carbs saved (about 8x difference)

Milk Alternatives

There are a ton of keto-friendly and low carb milk options– but dairy milk is not one of them! Milk from a cow, in any variety, is loaded with around 12g of sugar per cup. Yikes!

We highly recommend switching to a zero sugar, unsweetened milk alternative instead. Of course, the reason milk tastes so good is because of the sugar. As such, we use unsweetened milk alternatives as complements to sweet foods.

For drinking on its own, you can sweeten up your favorite milk alternative with a keto-friendly sweetener, such as our favorite non-bitter, organic BetterStevia extract.

Whole Milk vs. So Delicious Coconut Milk

  • Standard:      12g net carbs per cup (Whole Milk)
  • Alternative:   1g net carb per cup (Coconut Milk)
  • Difference:    -11g net carbs saved (about 12x difference)

Are they just not into non-dairy milk? Well, you still have a better dairy milk option. The best dairy milk we have found is the reduced sugar Fairlife Ultra-Filtered Whole Milk. This brand’s product filters the milk to produce a milk with half the regular amount of sugar or 6g net carbs per cup.

Standard Whole Milk vs. Fairlife Ultra-Filtered Whole Milk

Cheese Puff Alternative:

Lesser Evil Paleo Puffs

Lesser Evil Paleo Puffs aren’t really low carb, but they have a lower glycemic index thanks to ingredients like cassava flour and coconut flour. What that means is you won’t be saving on the carb counts on this product, but you will receive a host of other benefits.

  • Lower glycemic impact (cassava flour GI 46, tapioca flour GI 70, coconut flour 45 vs. Corn Flour GI of 69)
  • Gluten-free
  • Dairy-free
  • Paleo-friendly
  • Vegan
  • Better oil source of Coconut Oil vs. the conventional Canola/Sunflower oils, which are higher in inflammatory PUFAs

Take-away message: If Cheetos are normally a staple, swap them out for these Paleo Puffs as a better alternative. Quite aptly named, these Paleo Puffs are a “lesser evil” version of the classic.

Also, they taste great! We ran into a little boy at our local co-op who was begging his mom for a few bags of these! It’s safe to say that these things are kid approved!

Paleo Puffs come in 3 flavors at 17g net carbs per 1 oz serving. Standard Cheetos puffs contain about the same amount of net carbs per serving.

Lower Carb Tortilla Chips:

The Real Coconut Tortilla Chips

There are a couple of tortilla chip alternatives that use lower glycemic ingredients than corn. Our favorite is The Real Coconut Tortilla Chips.

They have a nice crunchy texture and work well for things like guacamole and salsa.

The main ingredients are coconut flour and coconut oil, which are really great, nutrient-dense foods. The glycemic index of coconut is around 45, which is less than the corn used in traditional tortilla strips.

Plus you get a ton of healthy fat to keep you full.

These come in 4 different flavors (around 12g net carbs each)

[Also, see all the other lower carb tortilla chip options that we’ve found out]

Tostito’s Corn Tortilla Chips vs. The Real Coconut Tortilla Chips

  • Standard:       18g net carbs per 28g (Tostito’s)
  • Alternative:   12g net carbs per 28g (The Real Coconut)
  • Difference:     -6g net carbs saved (about 1.5x difference)

Kids Low Carb Protein Bar:

Think Kids Protein Bars

Think Kids Protein Bars are about a 1/3 of the net carbs of competitors like ZBar from Clif Kids. There are only 7g of protein, so you’re not overloading your kids with protein, either.

These bars also contain 4g of sugar instead of around 8g, so you halve the sugar content going from the Clif Bars.

Plus, they taste great! They have a nice sweet taste that kids will enjoy and provide a good mix of macronutrients.

Think Kids Protein Bars come in 5 different flavors:

Clif Kids Z Bar vs. Think Kids Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars 

  • Standard:       20g net carbs per bar(Clif Kids ZBar)
  • Alternative:   7g net carbs per bar(Think Kids Protein Bars)
  • Difference:     -13g net carbs saved (about 3x difference)

Nestle Crunch Bar:

Lily’s Double Chocolate Crunch

Lily’s Chocolate makes a whole line of chocolate products that are low carb. We love their entire product line and were thrilled when they recently introduced their Double Chocolate Crunch bars!

The bars have a similar texture to a Nestle Crunch bar thanks to the inclusion of a small bit of rice crisps.

All of this at only 2g net carbs per bar!

Lily’s also uses Non-GMO ingredients and sweetens their bars with a mix of erythritol and stevia.

Lily’s Crunch bars come in 2 flavors:

Nestle Crunch Bar vs. Lily’s Double Chocolate Bars 

  • Standard:       18.5g net carbs per 28g (Nestle Crunch)
  • Alternative:   2g net carbs per 28g (Lily’s Chocolate Bar)
  • Difference:     -16.5g net carbs saved (about 9x difference)

Low Carb Cookies!

Cookies are one of those that are hard to find. But as you can see, we’ve found some really great alternatives that greatly reduce the net carbohydrate content!

We are very picky about cookies and these ones past the test for taste and texture. And as you can see below, there is a night and day difference between the net carb counts!

Best Chips Ahoy alternative: Quest Protein Cookie – Chocolate Chip

  • Buttercream makes these cookies very soft!
  • Only 4g net carbs per 59g cookie (vs. 37.5g net carbs for Chips Ahoy!)

Best Entenmann’s Little Bites alternative: Fat Snax Chocolate Chip Cookies

  • Soft, muffin-like texture. Great subtle sweetness and taste. Sweetened with erythritol.
  • Only 2g net carbs per 20g cookie (vs. 11.5g net carbs for Little Bites)

Best Grandma’s Oatmeal Raisin Cookie alternative: Alyssa’s Healthy Bites

  • Amazing oatmeal taste without all the carbs. Sweetened with chicory root fiber.
  • Only 2g net carbs per 43 gram cookie (vs. 25g net carbs for Grandma’s Oatmeal Raisin Cookies)

Low Carb Chewy Chocolate Chip Bars Alternative:

 Sola Granola Bars

Chewy bars are ubiquitous within elementary-age lunch pails across the U.S. They are just so convenient and kids love them. However, they are pretty high carb.

Sola’s bars are super tasty with a similar chewy texture, just with much less carbs!

These bars come in 3 great flavors and they all have a legitimate sweetness to them.

Chewy Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bars vs. Sola Peanut Butter & Milk Chocolate Bars 

  • Standard:       25g net carbs per 38g (Chewy Bar)
  • Alternative:   6g net carbs per 38g (Sola Bar)
  • Difference:     -19g net carbs saved (about 4x difference)

Cheez-It Crackers – Low Carb Copy Cats!

The most low carb and keto-friendly low carb cracker has been Liberated Cheddar Crackers. These have the crunch and cheesiness at a cost of 2g net carbs per serving.

If you’re looking for a low carb cracker that kids can eat freely, this one’s it.

There are also a couple of great lower glycemic, Paleo friendly options that come in convenient little snack bag sizes. These options are both delicious and crunchy!

Cheez-It vs. Liberated Cheddar Crackers

  • Standard:      19g net carbs per cup (Cheez-It)
  • Alternative:   0g net carb per pouch (Liberated Crackers)
  • Difference:    -19g net carbs saved (about 19x difference)

Low Carb Pancakes, Waffles & Syrup:

Good Dee’s Sugar Free Sweetness Pancake Mix

While not a snack, these breakfast staples can go a long way to keeping the kids full and satisfied.

Good Dee’s makes a great almond flour-based pancake that’s sugar free and gluten free! After you make them, the are about 1g net carb per 2 pancakes! You can also make waffles out of this mix.

Krusteaz Pancake Mix vs. Good Dee’s Pancake Mix

  • Standard:      13g net carbs per serving (Krusteaz)
  • Alternative:   1g net carb per serving (Good Dee’s)
  • Difference:    -12g net carbs saved (about 13x difference)

Smucker’s Breakfast Syrup

Smucker’s does not mess around with taste and texture of their products and the same goes for their Sugar Free Breakfast Syrup! This is a crowd pleaser for sure and allows you to use syrup without all the subsequent sugar highs and crashes!

The product does contain the sugar alcohol sorbitol. If you or your family is sensitive to sorbitol, you may want to try something more naturally-based.

Check out more pancake and syrup options we’ve previously written about.

Is there anything we can substitute for Fruit Juices?

I think it goes without saying that fruit juices are off the table for keto. Even if you are a supporter of fruit juices, it’s undeniable that they are neither low carb nor low sugar. If your kids are used to a sweet beverage with their meals, is there anything we could substitute?

An adult option would be Bai Drinks but those contain caffeine, so aren’t really suitable for kids.

For kids, the best thing we’ve found is actually a sports drink!

It’s Body Armor Lyte!

Body Armor Lyte doesn’t list the amount of sugar alcohols that are used, so we can’t accurately calculate the nutritional values. But the net carbohydrate count is likely around 6g net carbs per 8 oz, based on what we can gather from the label. It might be even lower than that.

These taste really great and come in 4 fruity flavors. They are all sweetened with erythritol, cane sugar, and stevia.

Tip: You can buy a variety pack on Amazon with all 4 flavors.

Dole Pineapple Orange Banana Juice vs. Body Armor Lyte Peach Mango

Fruit Roll-Up Alternative:

 Veggie-Go’s Organic Fruit and Veggie Strips

These Veggie-Go’s Fruit Strips take Fruit Roll-Ups to the next level! Plus they save on a ton of sugars and are easy to pack as a part of keto kid lunches.

  • Made primarily with fruit and veggie purees. That means you get a full serving of fruit and veggies in every strip!
  • No preservatives.
  • No food coloring.

Comes in 6 great flavors, all 4g net carbs per strip!

Fruit Roll-Ups vs. Veggie-Go’s Fruit Strips

  • Standard:      9.5g net carbs per strip (Fruit Roll-Ups)
  • Alternative:   4g net carbs per strip (Veggie-Go’s Berry)
  • Difference:    -5.5g net carbs saved (about 2.5x difference)

But, what about actual fresh fruit?

There are some fruits that are suitable for a low carb diet. It’s a nice way to inject some freshness into your children’s diets.

However, there is a huge range of variability between the sugar and carb contents of various fruits.

For example, strawberries are in the 3g net carb range per serving while bananas are in the 15g net carb per serving range!

As such, it’s safest to stick to strawberries, raspberries and blackberries for fruit.

(By the way, blueberries specifically are higher in carbs and are purposely excluded from the above list of berries).

Bananas vs. Blackberries – An Example

  • Bananas:      25g net carbs per 100g (Bananas)
  • Blackberries:   4g net carbs per 100g (Blackberries)
  • Difference:    -21g net carbs saved (about 6.25x difference)

String Cheese: Go Full Fat!

String cheese is an awesome and easy snack! The big thing we have to say here is go for organic brands, which are more likely to use grass-fed dairy.

Also, go for the full fat variety rather than low fat ones. The full-fat versions will keep your child full longer and also gets their palate accustomed to fattier foods.

That’s it!

Thanks for checking out our Ultimate Guide to Keto Snacks for Kids!

We hope our reviews help you find something that you can use to better your family’s health! We know your children (or even you) will enjoy these kid friendly keto snacks. If you have any questions or concerns, please let us know in the comments.

**Help spread the word and share this list of keto snacks for kids via Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest!**

 

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