Drug & supplement interaction

Ketogenic Diet + Glucose

Glucose brand name: IV Glucose.

Moderate Interaction
Medically reviewed by · Updated September 2026
The bottom line Moderate

Glucose falls into 2 drug categories that Ketogenic Diet can interact with; the most serious is rated moderate. Theoretically, following the ketogenic diet while using antidiabetes drugs might increase the risk of hypoglycemia.

Read the full interaction report
SeverityModerate
LikelihoodPossible
Interactions2
EvidenceB
What do Severity, Likelihood & Evidence mean?
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Interaction report

Ketogenic Diet and Glucose

These two interact in 2 distinct ways. Each one is explained separately below.

Why Are There 2 Interactions?

Ketogenic Diet interacts with whole categories of medication. Glucose falls into 2 of those categories, so it can interact with Ketogenic Diet in 2 different ways. We’ve listed each one below — your overall risk is driven by the most serious of them (Moderate).

Moderate

ANTIDIABETES DRUGS

1 of 2

Why this applies to Glucose

Glucose falls under ANTIDIABETES DRUGS — the group Ketogenic Diet interacts with.

Theoretically, following the ketogenic diet while using antidiabetes drugs might increase the risk of hypoglycemia.
The ketogenic diet involves a very low intake of carbohydrates, which can result in decreased blood glucose levels in patients taking antidiabetes drugs. In some patients, the need for antidiabetes drugs is reduced. Hypoglycemia has also occurred in some individuals without diabetes, although this is uncommon.
Severity Moderate Likelihood Possible Evidence B

Interaction has been documented in animal or in lab research, or the interaction has been documented in humans but is limited to case reports or conflicting clinical research exists.

Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS
Dr. Brian Staiger explains PharmD, Clinical Pharmacist

Here's a bit of a twist with this one. Glucose (the IV sugar form) isn't a typical diabetes medication that lowers your blood sugar. It's actually the opposite. Doctors give glucose to raise blood sugar, often to treat a low (hypoglycemia) or to provide quick energy. So the usual concern with the keto diet and diabetes drugs (that they might push your blood sugar too low) doesn't really apply the same way here.

If anything, a very low-carb keto diet keeps your blood sugar on the lower side, which is exactly when glucose might be used to bring it back up. The two don't fight each other. Still, please run your specific situation by your doctor or pharmacist, since why you're getting glucose matters a lot.

Contact Dr. Brian directly if you have additional questions on this interaction
References
  1. Liu H, Yang Y, Wang Y, et al. Ketogenic diet for treatment of intractable epilepsy in adults: A meta-analysis of observational studies. Epilepsia Open. 2018;3(1):9-17. PubMed
  2. Yancy WS Jr, Westman EC, McDuffie JR, et al. A randomized trial of a low-carbohydrate diet vs orlistat plus a low-fat diet for weight loss. Arch Intern Med. 2010;170(2):136-45. PubMed
  3. Goday A, Bellido D, Sajoux I, et al. Short-term safety, tolerability and efficacy of a very low-calorie-ketogenic diet interventional weight loss program versus hypocaloric diet in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Nutr Diabetes. 2016;6(9):e230. PubMed
  4. Saslow LR, Mason AE, Kim S, et al. An online intervention comparing a very low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet and lifestyle recommendations versus a plate method diet in overweight individuals with type 2 diabetes: A randomized controlled trial. J Med Intern
  5. Hussain TA, Mathew TC, Dashti AA, Asfar S, Al-Zaid N, Dashti HM. Effect of low-calorie versus low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet in type 2 diabetes. Nutrition. 2012;28(10):1016-21. PubMed
  6. Cervenka MC, Hocker S, Koenig M, et al. Phase I/II multicenter ketogenic diet study for adult superrefractory status epilepticus. Neurology. 2017;88(10):938-943. PubMed
Moderate

SODIUM-GLUCOSE CO-TRANSPORTER 2 (SGLT2) INHIBITORS

2 of 2

Glucose also falls under SODIUM-GLUCOSE CO-TRANSPORTER 2 (SGLT2) INHIBITORS.

Combining SGLT2 inhibitors with the ketogenic diet can increase the risk of ketoacidosis.
The National Lipid Association Nutrition and Lifestyle Task Force recommends that patients following diets that restrict carbohydrates to 20-50 grams daily, such as the ketogenic diet, avoid taking SGLT2 inhibitors. This combination increases the risk of developing ketoacidosis.
Severity Moderate Likelihood Possible Evidence C

Interaction has been documented in animal or in lab research, or the interaction has been documented in humans but is limited to case reports or conflicting clinical research exists.

Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS
Dr. Brian Staiger explains PharmD, Clinical Pharmacist

Quick heads-up: the interaction we have on file is really about SGLT2 inhibitors (medicines like empagliflozin, dapagliflozin, or canagliflozin used for diabetes), not plain glucose itself. Glucose is simply sugar, the body's main fuel. It isn't an SGLT2 inhibitor and isn't processed by the liver like a typical drug, so the warning here doesn't directly apply to taking glucose with a keto diet.

The real concern is this: if you take an SGLT2 inhibitor and follow a very low-carb keto diet (20 to 50 grams of carbs a day), your risk of ketoacidosis can go up. That's a serious problem. If you're on one of those diabetes drugs, please check with your pharmacist or doctor before starting keto.

Contact Dr. Brian directly if you have additional questions on this interaction
References
  1. Kirkpatrick CF, Bolick JP, Kris-Etherton PM, et al. Review of current evidence and clinical recommendations on the effects of low-carbohydrate and very-low-carbohydrate (including ketogenic) diets for the management of body weight and other cardiometaboli
  2. Guirguis H, Beroukhim Afrahimi S, Pham C. The use of SGLT-2 inhibitors coupled with a strict low-carbohydrate diet: A set-up for inducing severe diabetic ketoacidosis. Clin Med Insights Case Rep 2022;15:11795476221090045. PubMed

What These Ratings Mean

Every interaction above is graded three ways — here’s the key to each label.

Severity how clinically significant the interaction is
Major

Clinically significant. Avoid the combination, or use only under close professional supervision.

Moderate

Usually worth avoiding or managing — may need monitoring, a dose change, or timing apart.

Minor

Generally not serious. Be aware of it and mention it to your pharmacist.

Likelihood how strong the evidence is that the interaction actually happens in people
  • LikelyWell-controlled human studies have demonstrated the likely existence of this interaction.
  • ProbableInteraction has not been documented in well-controlled studies, however, the interaction has been demonstrated in some small human studies or in controlled animal studies in conjunction with multiple case reports.
  • PossibleInteraction has been documented in animal or in lab research, or the interaction has been documented in humans but is limited to case reports or conflicting clinical research exists.
  • UnlikelyInteraction has been demonstrated in animal or in lab research but has been shown not to occur in humans.
Evidence the quality of the studies behind the rating (graded A–D)
  • AHigh-quality meta-analysis (quantitative systematic review).
  • BCase-control study.
  • CConsensus.
  • DAnecdotal evidence.

These ratings are for information only. Never start, stop, or otherwise change your therapy before speaking with your provider.

Keep it in perspective

Ketogenic Diet Also Interacts With Other Medications

Ketogenic Diet has 136 moderate, 122 minor known drug interactions in our database — the Glucose one above is among them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Moderate 136 Minor 122 No known interaction 2,572 (incl. Glucose)
Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Ketogenic Diet

Covers the 2,830 medications we’ve checked against Ketogenic Diet. Pick one to open its full report.

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With Glucose

This page covers Ketogenic Diet only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Glucose page lists 256 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Siberian Cocklebur (major), Acai (moderate), African Wild Potato (moderate) and Agaricus Mushroom (moderate).

By severity: 2 major · 215 moderate · 39 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Glucose page

“Glucose given by IV raises a dangerously low blood sugar, and this list warrants real caution because most of its 256 ingredients pull the other way. Nearly all of them lower blood sugar on their own, working against the treatment and setting up another crash.”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Glucose interaction page

How much people look this up

Where Ketogenic Diet and Glucose Sit Against Everything Else

Out of every supplement and medication people look up on HelloPharmacist, here is where these two land this week — and which way each has been moving.

Supplement Ketogenic Diet
Steady interest

#1,196 of 1,452 supplements looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today
Medication Glucose
Top 25%

#695 of 2,830 medications looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today

Position among everything looked up on this site, not a measure of how commonly either one is used or how important it is. A supplement can climb this list because of a news story. It counts every request to the page, automated ones included, and nothing here identifies anyone.

Eating pattern

About Ketogenic Diet

What is Ketogenic Diet?

  • Weight loss
  • Type 2 diabetes and blood sugar control
  • Drug-resistant epilepsy (especially in children)
  • Reducing appetite
  • Athletic and metabolic interest

The ketogenic diet is a very low-carbohydrate, high-fat eating plan that shifts the body to burn fat for fuel. It has the strongest evidence as a medical therapy for hard-to-treat epilepsy and may help short-term weight loss and blood sugar, but it can be hard to sustain and is not right for everyone. Talk with a doctor or pharmacist before starting, especially if you have a medical condition or take medication.

Read the full Ketogenic Diet monograph & all interactions
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Ketogenic Diet

Browse every other medication we’ve checked against Ketogenic Diet — both the ones with a known interaction and the ones without. Select any drug for the full detail.

0Major
136Moderate
122Minor
2,571No known interaction
136 Moderate 122 Minor 2,571 No interaction
Moderate

136 interactions

Showing 60 of 136 moderate interactions — see all 136 on the Ketogenic Diet page.

Minor

122 interactions

Showing 60 of 122 minor interactions — see all 122 on the Ketogenic Diet page.

No interaction 2,571 drugs checked — show the list

We also checked Ketogenic Diet against these medications and found no known interaction in our sources. Open any page to confirm.

Showing the 60 most looked-up of 2,571 medications checked with no known interaction — see the full Ketogenic Diet list.

See the full Ketogenic Diet interactions page
See every supplement checked against Glucose, ranked by severity
Sources

Sources & How We Checked

Interaction details are evidence-graded and sourced from the Natural Medicines database. The medication overview comes from MedlinePlus.

Content is written and reviewed by licensed HelloPharmacist pharmacists. See our data sources and editorial standards for how this information is built and checked.

Parts of this content are provided by the Therapeutic Research Center, LLC.

DISCLAIMER: Currently this does not check for drug-drug interactions. This is not an all-inclusive comprehensive list of potential interactions and is for informational purposes only. Not all interactions are known or well-reported in the scientific literature, and new interactions are continually being reported. Input is needed from a qualified healthcare provider including a pharmacist before starting any therapy. Application of clinical judgment is necessary.

© 2021 Therapeutic Research Center, LLC

Keep exploring
Ketogenic Diet monograph › Uses, safety, and every drug interaction in one place Glucose supplement interactions › Every supplement checked against Glucose, ranked by severity Supplement interaction checker › Check any supplement or product against your medications Browse medications A–Z › Every drug we've checked against herbs & supplements Ask a pharmacist › Free, personal answer from our licensed team
Pharmacist Counseling Corner

Following Ketogenic Diet While Taking Glucose: Common Questions

Can you follow Ketogenic Diet while taking Glucose?
There is a moderate interaction, so it may be acceptable with monitoring or timing changes — but check with your pharmacist first. Read the full details on this page and confirm with your pharmacist before combining them.
Why are there 2 interactions listed for Ketogenic Diet and Glucose?
Glucose belongs to more than one drug category, and Ketogenic Diet interacts with each of those categories a little differently. We list every one so nothing is missed — your overall risk is driven by the most serious of them.
How serious is the Ketogenic Diet and Glucose interaction?
We rate it Moderate. This combination may require monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separating the times you take each one. Consult your pharmacist before using them together.

Written and reviewed by the HelloPharmacist editorial staff. Our editorial policy

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This information is for education only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always check with your pharmacist or doctor before starting, stopping, or combining supplements and medications.