Are Atkins Peanut Butter Cups Keto Friendly?

If you’re following the keto diet, desserts are usually off-limits. But many brands are now offering more low-carb treats to satisfy your sweet tooth.

One leading brand in the low-carb market is Atkins. They offer a variety of treats, such as protein shakes, meal bars, snack bars, and their famous peanut butter cups.

I know you’re curiously asking, are Atkins Peanut Butter Cups keto-friendly?

Find out what is really in Atkins Peanut Butter Cups, whether they have any real nutritional value, and why you should only eat them occasionally on the ketogenic diet. 

What are Atkins Peanut Butter Cups?

Atkins Peanut Butter Cups are one of the sweet yet guilt-free products of Atkins Nutritionals Inc., a leading brand in the low-carb market.

The description of these desserts says it all on the website! It “tastes just like what you’re thinking of, with not one bit of remorse.” 

And we all know what brand they’re talking about.

The peanut butter cups are creamy milk chocolate cups filled with tasty peanut butter. 

Atkins claims that their peanut butter cups only contain 1g net carbs and 0g of sugar, making them guilt-free.

Atkins Nutritionals Inc. recently rebranded by changing their packaging, shifting the focus from weight loss to lifestyle. 

After all, not everyone who goes on a low-carb diet like keto aims to lose weight. Some simply do it to feel good and be healthy.

Originally founded as Complementary Formulations in 1989, Atkins Internationals, Inc. was acquired by Conyers Park Corporation, which is now under a new name called The Simply Good Foods Company. 

Atkins Peanut Butter Cups Nutrition

Here’s a breakdown of Atkins Peanut Butter Cups’ nutritional content based on the label.

Fat

Atkins Peanut Butter contains 6g of fat. 3.5 grams of saturated fat, 0.5g of polyunsaturated, and the remaining 2.5g is monounsaturated fats. 

Fat is the cornerstone of the ketogenic diet. This macronutrient is where we get fuel to induce ketosis, a metabolic state that helps burn fats.

Make sure to consume high-quality fats on the keto diet to avoid heart disease, obesity, and other health conditions. 

Protein

Atkins Peanut Butter Cups are low in protein. With only 1g of protein, we consider this treat to contain insufficient nutrients despite containing soy, peanuts, and milk.

This is pretty surprising as some of Atkins’ products are high in protein, specifically the Atkins Meal Bars and Atkins Snack Bars.

Atkins even has protein shakes to help build your muscle and improve your overall body function.

One of the protein sources of these peanut butter cups is sodium caseinate. 

Sodium caseinate forms when casein proteins are chemically extracted from skim milk.

Research suggests that casein can promote the growth and repair of muscle tissue, making it a great option among athletes and weightlifters.

However, this is simply hard to attain when each serving only contains 1g of protein.

This ingredient is also used to modify the texture of foods like dough and commercially prepared baked goods as it increases water absorption.

However, if you have an allergy to casein, avoid sodium caseinates. Otherwise, you might experience symptoms like:

• diarrhea
• vomiting
• pale skin
• weight loss.

If you’re on a vegan diet, take note that sodium caseinate contains cow’s milk. 

Look for vegan-friendly alternatives that are also keto-friendly.

Carbs and Sugar

Carbs and sugar are the most important labels to watch out for when you’re on the ketogenic diet.

Atkins Peanut Butter Cups are surprisingly low in carbs. Each serving only has 9g of total carbs and 1g net carbs.

Its high-carb competitor, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups contains 24g of total carbs and 22g of net carbs for 220 calories, which is a lot more!

One serving of the original peanut butter cups may quickly impact your ketosis.

Remember that net carbs are computed by subtracting fiber and sugar alcohols from the total carbs. That means 9g total carb minus 2g of fiber and 6g of sugar alcohols leaves only 1g net carbs.

However, the way sugar alcohols are processed by the body varies, so it’s still possible for Atkins Peanut Butter Cups to contain a bit higher net carbs than 1g. 

Sugar alcohols can’t activate food reward regions of the brain the way sugar can, so they may not fully satisfy your desire for sweet ingestion.

The result may mean overeating these peanut butter cups until you feel satiated. 

This indicates that sugar alcohols may not be an effective way to manage a craving for sweets, especially if you’re on a low-carb diet like keto.

The sweetener used in Atkins Peanut Butter Cups is sucralose, a low-carb sweetener that is often marketed as good for weight loss.

While it offers no nutritional benefits, this low-carb sugar alcohol lowers blood glucose, making it a good replacement for sugar.

It’s also more affordable, so you get more sweetness from your food at a cheap cost.

Unlike most sugar alcohols, sucralose has no bitter aftertaste. It’s considered safe for children, pregnant women, and breastfeeding women without adverse effects.

While sucralose is low-carb, it can still induce sweet cravings. Plus, recent studies show that baking with sucralose can be harmful as substances called chloropropanols are produced. 

Fiber

Atkins Peanut Butter Cups only contain 2g of dietary fiber, which can be a cause of concern as insufficient fiber intake can stall your metabolism.

Many people on the keto diet lack fiber because it usually comes from carb sources. 

Fiber is necessary to feed your good gut bacteria, which are crucial for weight control, blood sugar control, immune function, and brain function.

Vitamins and Minerals

Atkins Peanut Butter Cups do not contain vitamins and minerals, except 2% of your recommended iron intake.

Overall, Atkins Peanut Butter Cups are low in nutrients because they are meant to be used only as a treat to reward yourself from time to time.

Are Atkins Peanut Butter Cups Keto-Friendly?

Atkins Peanut Butter Cups can be deemed keto-friendly if you consider them as an occasional treat for when your sweet cravings are calling you.

Remember that your daily carb limit on the keto diet is around 25 to 50 grams, so one serving will not kick you out of ketosis.

However, the inclusion of sucralose in Atkins Peanut Butter Cups and any other Atkins product means we don’t recommend them. 

So many keto-friendly sweeteners exist, such as erythritol, monk fruit, stevia, and allulose.

Beware of sucralose’s ability to make you crave more sweets. Otherwise, your keto diet efforts may go to waste.

As an everyday dessert, Atkins Peanut Butter Cups are not recommended. They offers little to no essential nutrients or health benefits.

Choose healthy and low-carb desserts on the keto diet so you can indulge without the guilt.

FAQ Keto Diet and Atkins Snacks

What is the Best Atkins Product on Keto?

All Atkins products are okay on keto as long as they are only occasional treats. The only issue with these foods and drinks is the presence of unwanted sweeteners.

These sweeteners are maltitol and sucralose. 

Because keto-friendly also means nutrient-dense, we consider Atkins Meal bars the most keto-friendly because they contain a huge amount of protein while also being low-carb.

Atkins Meal bars also contain vitamins and minerals, although we don’t recommend using them as meal replacements.

Do Atkins Peanut Butter Cups Help with Weight Loss?

Atkins Peanut Butter Cups do not necessarily make you lose weight.

Instead, they help “satisfy” your cravings for sweets because they are a low-carb alternative to the famous brand of peanut butter cups.

As long as you don’t go over your daily carb limit and are opting for regular servings of healthier foods, Atkins Peanut Butter Cups will have no negative impact on your weight loss efforts.

How Do I Know if Atkins Peanut Butter Cups Kicked Me Out of Ketosis?

The most precise way to find out if a food or drink has pushed you out of ketosis is by testing your ketone levels.

Generally, if your macro calculations say that you need to limit your daily carb intake to 20g net carbs, it will take around 8-10 peanut butter cups before you get kicked out.

But this is only true if you haven’t eaten anything else with carbs before consuming the Atkins Peanut Butter Cups.

Find out the best ketone level testing methods to see if any of your snacks have kicked you out of ketosis.

Occasional Treats are Okay!

As long as you don’t eat them frequently, then having one Atkins Peanut Butter Cup should not be a problem. You deserve to treat yourself from time to time to stay motivated on keto.

However, you need to beware of this product’s tendency to make you crave more. Have the discipline to eat only one when you desperately need it for you to stay in a healthy state of ketosis.

Atkins Peanut Butter Cups also contain very few nutrients, which is normal because they are not meant to be a meal replacement.

Go on and enjoy that occasional treat! 

But if you want to make your own low-carb peanut butter cups, make sure to look out for the best keto-friendly peanut butter brands!