Carbs in Mango: Is It Keto Friendly?

Mango | Carbs | Keto | Alternatives | Conclusion | FAQ

I’m sitting on the beach in Thailand right now and can see mango everywhere. People snack on the tropical fruit here as a refreshment, breakfast, or dessert with sticky rice.

Since carnivore diet doctor Paul Saladino worships mango on social media, many keto enthusiasts ask whether it suits the low-carb diet.

But can the sweet mango be suitable for keto because of its carbohydrates? Find out here and more.

Is Mango Keto?

Mango originated between India and Myanmar, and Borneo.

Mango comes from the Tamil word mangkay or mangay. Portuguese traders who settled in the West of India first named the fruit Manga, which eventually changed to today’s mango.

The sweet fruit is at home in the tropical rainforest. Can mango suit keto and other low-carb diets because of its carbohydrates?

We need to look closely at the mango’s nutrition facts.

Carbs in Mango

Mango stands out for its sweet taste, especially as juice or smoothie. Is this sweetness of nature full of carbohydrates?

How Many Carbohydrates Are in Mango?

100 grams of mango provide the following average nutritional values (*):

• Energy: 65 calories
• Protein: 0.5 grams
• Fat: 0.3 grams
• Carbohydrates: 17.0 grams
• Dietary fiber: 1.8 grams
• Net carbs: 15.2 grams

According to the nutrition facts, carbohydrates predominate in mango. It is also almost free of fat and protein.

In short, mango is a high-carbohydrate, low-fat food. Mango is not precisely what we are looking for in a keto diet. It has a fat-to-net carbohydrate ratio of 0.02.

Is Mango Keto-Friendly?

Mango is not suitable for the ketogenic diet.

A single cup of mango pieces (165 grams) can already throw you out of ketosis. It already exceeds the limit of 25 grams of net carbs.

A whole mango provides about 29 grams of pure sugar. 94% of a mango’s energy comes from carbohydrates (*).

Mango drives blood sugar, insulin levels, and ultimately fat gain (Teff et al. 2004¹; Meijssen et al. 2001²; Chandalia et al. 2000³).

In short, mango is not suitable for weight loss.

Is Mango Healthy?

According to the nutritional information, the mango is a sugar bomb. Therefore, is it perhaps the vitamins that make the mango healthy?

One cup of mango pieces (165 grams) can provide the daily requirement of vitamin C and ¾ of the daily requirement of manganese, but that’s about it. Mango contains no other vitamins or minerals worth mentioning (*).

Mangoes are good sources of vitamin C. One large mango can provide the daily requirement of vitamin C.

Hence, it’s healthier than an apple, which contains no significant vitamins. Nevertheless, it performs even worse than pineapple or grapefruit as far as micronutrients are concerned.

With most fruits, unfortunately, the marketing is healthier than their consumption.

Keto Alternatives to Mango

If you don’t want to miss the sweet freshness of mango in a ketogenic diet, it’s best to substitute them with berries.

Raspberries, for example, contain far more fiber, fewer net carbohydrates, and significantly more vitamins and minerals than mango (*).

Therefore, you can enjoy them, even on a very low-carb diet.

Due to Carbs, Mango Is Not Keto

Among the supposedly healthy tropical fruits, mango is a poor choice for low-carb diets. It simply contains too much sugar. A large mango can instantly throw you out of ketosis.

Mango is not suitable for the ketogenic diet. Strawberries or raspberries are the better alternatives among fruits.

Carbs in Mango: Keto FAQ

Is mango OK on a low-carb diet?

Mango contains too many carbs for low-carb diets.

How many carbs are in a whole mango?

There are about 29 grams of net carbs in a whole mango.

Is mango a good carb?

Mango is full of sugar and not considered a good carb.

Studies

¹Teff KL, Elliott SS, Tschöp M, Kieffer TJ, Rader D, Heiman M, Townsend RR, Keim NL, D’Alessio D, Havel PJ. Dietary fructose reduces circulating insulin and leptin, attenuates postprandial suppression of ghrelin, and increases triglycerides in women. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2004 Jun;89(6):2963-72. doi: 10.1210/jc.2003-031855. PubMed PMID: 15181085.

²Meijssen S, Cabezas MC, Ballieux CG, Derksen RJ, Bilecen S, Erkelens DW. Insulin mediated inhibition of hormone sensitive lipase activity in vivo in relation to endogenous catecholamines in healthy subjects. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2001 Sep;86(9):4193-7. doi: 10.1210/jcem.86.9.7794. PubMed PMID: 11549649.

³Chandalia M, Garg A, Lutjohann D, von Bergmann K, Grundy SM, Brinkley LJ. Beneficial effects of high dietary fiber intake in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. N Engl J Med. 2000 May 11;342(19):1392-8. doi: 10.1056/NEJM200005113421903. PubMed PMID: 10805824.