A good friend on the ketogenic journey

Why is there acetone in your breath?

When you are in ketosis, the body naturally creates and releases ketones. One of the ketones is acetone. Acetone escapes the body through the lungs. This is why some people get a “bad breath” when their bodies are in a ketogenic state.

The three types of ketones:

— Acetoacetate
— Beta-hydroxybutyrate
— Acetone

Measuring acetone

Acetrack is an easy way of measuring acetone, using nothing but your own breath. Breath analyzation is the only way to get a real-time indicator of your ketonic state. It’s more accurate than urine samples, and less invasive than blood samples.

More acetone – higher level of ketosis

Acetone gas concentration in your breath is measured in unit of parts-per-million (ppm). The current levels of acetone gives an indication of the current level of ketosis. The higher amount of acetone present, the higher level of ketosis.

The tech crunch

Acetrack is the only acetone breathalyzer that has a pressure sensor. The sensor makes it easy to standardize the testing, giving a more accurate result than other acetone tracking devices.

The app shows you how fast or slow you should exhale, so that you reach a constant flow of 50 mL/s for at least five seconds. This corresponds to a partial pressure between 10 and 20 cm H₂O.

Acetrack uses a tin dioxide (SnO₂) semiconducting sensor detecting organic solvent vapors, such as acetone, ethanol and methane. The highest sensitivity is for acetone, but interference from the other vapors in your breath will appear in the result. Acetrack will, for example, not yield correct results if you have drunk alcohol or larger quantities of milk prior to the test.

Low or high levels?

As a rule of thumb, a value over 5 ppm is considered a ketogenic state. When you are on a Low Carb diet or fasting, the aceton levels can be much higher — up to 250ppm. But the acetone levels are individual by nature, so it’s important to compare to your previous results rather than a standard chart. For some 40ppm is a high value — for others 120ppm: your range is personal and reflects your individual metabolism.

Using the results

Knowing when your body is and when it’s not ketogenic can help you make the dietary choices that best suits your lifestyle, health and weight loss goal. Your lifestyle and your diet choices are unique. Acetrack can help you understand your body better. It tells you when you are in ketosis by measuring the levels of acetone in your breath. Over time, you can figure out what daily choices are best for you and your diet goals.

If you are not close to being in ketosis, Acetrack will not produce relevant results due to too low acetone levels. Please turn to your health care provider for any questions regarding ketosis levels for pregnancy or diabetic states.