Does monk fruit break a fast? –– Explained by SIMPLE
The idea of intermittent fasting has been floating around in your mind, but maybe fasting sounds daunting, and you’re just not sure if it’s for you. You probably have lots of questions like, “Is it safe for me?” We can answer that one right now.
If you
- are pregnant, breastfeeding, or trying to conceive
- have type 1 diabetes
- are on prescription medications
- are under the age of 18 or 80 years or older
- are extremely active
- have a body mass index (BMI) < 18.5
- have an eating disorder or a history of one (or are at risk of developing one)
We don’t recommend fasting as a safe strategy for you. If you don’t fit into any of these categories, it is most likely safe for you, but we always recommend you double-check with your doctor first.
Some other questions we often hear are,
“What to eat during intermittent fasting?”
“What can you drink while fasting?”
Or, what about some of those low-calorie or low-sugar foods and artificial sweeteners vs. non-calorie natural sweeteners you hear about, like stevia or monk fruit sweetener –– does monk fruit break your fast? How do they fit into fasting? What actually breaks a fast?
Deep breaths, we’ve got you! Start with our SIMPLE quiz for a personalized guide to all our tips, tricks, and resources on intermittent fasting. But for now, let’s knock out your question on monk fruit!
What is monk fruit?
The monk fruit is native to southern China and contains fructose and glucose.
But wait –– aren’t fructose and glucose forms of sugar? Yes, they are! But the sweetness in the zero-calorie monk fruit sweetener comes from an antioxidant found in the fruit: mogrosides. When extracted, it lends a flavor 150–250 times the sweetness of cane sugar and leaves behind the calories in the other components of the fruit.
Nutritional value
Monk fruit sweetener is a non-nutritive food. In other words, it doesn’t provide any nutrition –– 0 g of carbs, 0 g of protein, 0 g of fat, and 0 g of vitamins and minerals.[1]
Will monk fruit break a fast?
We now know that monk fruit sweetener has zero calories, but what does that mean for your fast? Does and will monk fruit sweetener break a fast? By our standards, anything less than 10 calories does not break a fast. So, consuming monk fruit will not break your fast.
Health benefits and possible drawbacks of using monk fruit while intermittent fasting
Benefits
Blood sugar –– Monk fruit sweetener may not increase your blood sugar,[2] which can be a helpful benefit, especially in people who struggle with conditions like diabetes or those looking at intermittent fasting and blood sugar control. However, more research is needed.[3]
Antioxidants –– It’s high in antioxidants that have been shown to be anti-inflammatory, further supporting intermittent fasting’s anti-inflammatory benefits.[4]
Weight-loss –– Since it’s a no-cal sweetener, it may help with weight loss by cutting down on calories when you switch from those high-cal sweeteners, but we still need more research to be sure.
Drawbacks
New –– Because monk fruit sweetener is a fairly new product, only approved by the FDA in 2010, there is limited research on the long-term effects or health benefits of regular use.[3]
Tips on using monk fruit during a fast
- Read the label –– Because the sweetness of monk fruit sweetener is so intense, some manufacturers will add other ingredients like sugar alcohols or other fillers that may include calories. In that case, your monk fruit sweetener may break a fast.
- Start small –– Monk fruit is significantly sweeter than regular sugar. Start with a small amount until you find the amount that works for you.
- Be mindful –– While monk fruit is considered safe and may even add some health benefits, the research is not there yet to back up those claims. It’s unclear how monk fruit plays into insulin response while intermittent fasting or if it helps with the whole intermittent fasting and insulin resistance thing.
Listen to your body when making changes. If you’re someone who needs to monitor their blood sugar control, it would be a good idea to take extra care to do so when using monk fruit sweeteners.
- U.S. Department Of Agriculture. Agricultural Research Service. Monk Fruit Sweetener. FoodData Central [Internet]. [cited 2024 Feb 27].
- Gangoso A, Robben DM, Wesley MC, Rodriguez PRR. Comparison of the Glycemic Response of White Sugar and Monk Fruit Sweetener among Normoglycemic Subjects. isc. 2018 Oct 29;6(1):61–61.
- Yeung AWK. Bibliometric analysis on the literature of monk fruit extract and mogrosides as sweeteners. Front Nutr. 2023 Aug 29;10:1253255.
- Chen WJ, Wang J, Qi XY, Xie BJ. The antioxidant activities of natural sweeteners, mogrosides, from fruits of Siraitia grosvenori. Int J Food Sci Nutr. 2007 Nov;58(7):548–56.
