Did you know that there are 8 times more net carbs in a banana than there is in a whole avocado? And did you know that if you are feeling hungry the best thing to eat is a tablespoonful of healthy fat – like coconut oil (because it satiates your hunger pangs and has zero carbs!)?

How does Cereal Stack Up on the Banting Diet Food List?

And what about eating a bowl of bran flakes for breakfast – you know the one advertised with healthy happy slim people, laughing and eating their cereal with just a teaspoon of sugar. Let’s be honest, we only ate it because we thought it was healthy for us, because quite frankly corrugated cardboard has a better flavour. Did you know that this cereal can kick your insulin levels into high gear because of the net carbs at 20g per tiny unsatisfying 30g serving!

Banting really is a real food revolution, because it is changing the way we think about food. Previously fat was the enemy. But we have come to realise through scientific evidence that the body needs fat to survive, it also needs a little bit of protein. However, the one thing is doesn’t need – is carbohydrates! Fat has a much better way of metabolising through our bodies and also converting to useable energy when we need it. In fact you can run longer and faster on a bit of fat-loading before a race that you would be able to by carbo-loading. This is why you have started to see many athletes turning away from high carbohydrate diets and rather focus on high fat, medium protein, low carbohydrate ways of eating.

And so, in order to move forward with your health and make better choices every single day, it is important to gain the knowledge about the food that you are putting into your body. If you are following banting, Paleo, LCHF or any form of low carbohydrate lifestyle then the banting diet food list will help you to understand the macronutrients that are in your food.

Banting Green Food List

Many people don’t know what to eat on the banting diet and this list below will also help you decifer which of the foods you can eat almost freely and on a daily basis – that is the banting diet green food list. The green list should be like your banting shopping list – these are the foods that you want to have readily available in your home. The foods listed here have between 0g – 5g of net carbs per 100g (unless they are often consumed in small quantities like garlic which has 30g of net carbs per 100g believe it or not!). Most vegetables and fresh meat are included on this list, you will also see healthy fats, nuts and seeds and cheeses. Yum!

Banting Orange Food List

There are also foods that you can eat occasionally as healthy treats or as a small snack – these are the foods listed on the banting orange list.  Most fruits are on this list along with a few low carb alcoholic beverages if you really can’t go without your tipple. Stick to dry wines and spirits that have not been sweetened. The foods on this list have between 5g to 25g of net carbs per 100g.

Banting Red Food List

Then we have compiled a list of all of the foods that you should avoid altogether, or limit these as much as possible – this is the banting red list. This list contains foods that have a very high net carbohydrate or sugar content. Also included on this list are all processed foods, and foods that are toxic to the body because of added flavourants, preservatives
and unnatural sweeteners. There are thousands of pre-packaged products out there that should be on this red list, there are just too many of them to list here. So a good rule of thumb would be to avoid anything that is processed and contains ingredients that you cannot pronounce!

If you would like to download this full banting diet food list including their macronutrient contents (calories, fat, carbohydrates, sugar, fibre, net carbs and protein) per serving, then you can get this here – for FREE!

The Banting Diet Food List

GREEN LIST

Animal Protein

• All fresh animal protein
• Meat, Poulty, Game
• All Seafood
• Natural Cured Meats (e.g. Ham and Bacon – check packaging for additives or sugar content)
• Natural and Cured Sausages (e.g. Salami, Pork Bangers – check packaging)
• All eggs (including the yolk)

Baking and Sweeteners

• Erythritol
• Xylitol
• Stevia
• Low Carb Pre-Mixes (e.g. Crumpet Pre-Mix; Pizza Base Pre-Mix; Rosemary Flax Bread Pre-Mix; Chocolate Brownie Pre-Mix; Sweet Muffin Pre-Mix)
• Gluten-free Thickeners such as: Arrowroot Powder, Guar Gum and Xanthan Gum
• Psyllium Husks
• Cocoa Powder (unsweetened)
• Vanilla Extract (unsweetened)

Beverages

• Broth (meat and bone)
• Coconut Cream
• Coconut Milk
• Coconut Water
• Coffee, Tea and Herbal Teas
• Soda Water
• Sparkling Water

Dairy

• Most dairy as long as it’s Full Cream and Full Fat (low-fat and fat-free products often have sugar added to them)
• Cottage and Cream Cheese
• Cream and Sour Cream
• Double Cream and Greek or Bulgarian Yoghurt
• Milk
• Hard Cheeses (e.g. Gouda, cheddar etc.)
• Soft Cheeses (e.g. Brie, Camembert etc.)

Fats and Oils

• Animal Fat (e.g. Duck and Bacon)
• Oils, including: Avocado, Olive, Macadamia, MCT and Coconut
• Butter
• Ghee
• Lard
• Mayonnaise (check the label for low sugar, full fat option – or make your own!)

Nuts and Seeds

• Almond Flour / Meal
• Chia Meal
• Dried Coconut, Fine and Flakes
• Flaxseed Flour
• Nuts, including: Almonds, Brazil, Hazelnut, Macadamia, Pecans, Pine, Walnut (and except cashews, chestnuts and peanuts)
• Seeds, including: Chia seeds, Flaxseeds, Pumpkin seeds, Sesame seeds and Sunflower seeds
• Nut butters (like: Roasted Macadamia Butter and Roasted Almond Butter)

Vegetables

• All green leafy vegetables (lettuce, cabbage, swiss chard etc)
• All other vegetables (except Butternut, Parsnips, Peas, Sweet Potato and Normal Potato)
• Olives
• Sauerkraut

Other

• Cinnamon Chia Porridge – Plain
• Cinnamon Chia Porridge – with Xylitol
• Mild Dill Pickles (in brine, no sugar)
• All Flavourings and condiments that do not contain sugar, preservatives and seed oils (e.g. Vinegar)

ORANGE LIST

Beverages

• Dry white and red wine
• Unsweetened Spirits, including: Vodka, Whiskey, Brandy, Rum, Gin

Fruit

• All fresh fruit as long as it is not dried or juiced

Nuts

• Cashews
• Chestnuts

Vegetables

• Butternut
• Parsnips
• Peas
• Sweet Potato

 Other

• Honey (maximum of 1 tsp per day)
• Dark Chocolate (70-90% Cocoa)

RED LIST

Beverages

• Beer & Cider
• All fizzy drinks including diet drinks (Soda water and Sparkling Water are green list beverages)
• All fruit juices
• All cordials
• All sports and energy drinks

Dairy and Related Products

• Cheese Spreads and processed cheese
• Coffee and Tea Creamer
• Condensed Milk
• Custard
• Ice-cream
• Anything Fat-Free (and most Low-Fat products with sugar added)
• Rice Milk
• Soy Milk

Fruit and Vegetables

• All dried fruit (e.g. raisins, banana chips, dried mango etc.)
• All legumes (e.g. lentils, peanuts, soy beans)
• Potatoes
• Sweetcorn (Mielies)

Grains, Baked Goods & Confectionary

• All flours made from grains (e.g. white flour, all-purpose flour, cornflour, rice flour etc.)
• All bread
• All grains (e.g. Oats, Bran etc.)
• Crumbed and battered foods
• Cereals
• Cakes, Biscuits, Sweets and Chocolates
• Popcorn
• Couscous
• Crackers and Rice Cakes
• Pasta and Noodles
• Rice

Sauces & Spreads

• All sauces and marinades with preservatives, sugar and MSG (e.g. Barbecue sauce, Worcestershire sauce, sweet chilli sauce etc.)
• All jams
• All processed salad dressings
• All seed oils (e.g. sunflower, canola etc.)
• Margarine
• Marmite
• Peanut Butter

Sweeteners

• Agave
• Fructose
• Honey (except for max. 1 tsp per day)
• Maple Syrup
• Sugar (all forms)

Meat products

• Meats and meat products cured with sugar and excessive processing (e.g. polony, chicken loaf, viennas)
• Soya vegetarian protein products