Does Half and Half Break a Fast?

A certain amount of half and half is perfectly fine while fasting. Here’s exactly how much you can use and see results.

Does Half and Half Break a Fast?

If you are following Intermittent Fasting for religious purposes or you are following a water or dry fast, then any food of any type will break your fast. However, for the purposes that we follow with the Complete Intermittent Fasting Bundle protocols, a small amount of half and half will not break your fast.

One of the main goals with Intermittent Fasting is to reduce the insulin response in order to tap into fat burning mechanisms.

The food sources that spike insulin (and therefore break this type of Intermittent Fast) include protein and carbohydrates. As a good rule of thumb, I typically recommend staying under one gram total of protein and carbs. Exactly how many grams of protein or carbs that will cause an insulin response is variable from person to person. However, aiming for the “One Gram Rule” is a safe option.

One tablespoon of half and half generally comes in at just slightly above 1 gram of combined protein and carbs (.5 grams of protein and .6 grams of carbs, equating to a total of 1.1 grams). Slightly less than one tablespoon of half and half will bring you under one total gram of protein and carbs.

If aiming for slightly under one tablespoon of half and half in your coffee, this likely won’t spike insulin and therefore won’t break your fast.

However, if you exceed this one tablespoon amount and therefore exceed the 1g of net carbohydrates and protein, it is possible that the half and half will break your fast.