Paul Saladino on Carnivore Diet and Mental Health

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In this episode, Tristan sits down with Dr. Paul Saladino to dig into the diet and mental health connection, starting with a topic that gets overlooked in carnivore circles: amino acid balance, especially methionine vs glycine. They talk collagen, connective tissue, broth, and why “just muscle meat” might be missing something for long-term health.

Ever wonder why you can eat “all meat” and still feel like something is missing. Not in your macros, but in how your body handles stress, recovery, and repair? One underrated culprit is whether you are getting enough glycine, especially if your carnivore approach is mostly muscle meat.

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Meet the Guest

Dr. Paul Saladino is a physician, author, and one of the most well-known voices in the carnivore community. You might recognize him from his viral debates and research-backed discussions on animal-based nutrition. His passion for human performance and root-cause healing has helped thousands rethink their relationship with food and health.

Connect with Paul on Instagram and X for updates. You can also visit his personal website for more.

Episode Highlights

This conversation starts with a practical question a lot of carnivore eaters run into. If humans historically ate the whole animal, what happens when modern carnivore turns into mostly ground beef, lean cuts, and trimmed steaks?

Paul walks through why glycine can become a bottleneck for collagen and glutathione, why collagen-heavy foods can help hedge that risk, and how specific biomarkers like pyroglutamate, plasma glycine, and glutathione can be used to test the theory instead of arguing about it online.

In this episode:

• Setting up the core topic: the relationship between diet, nutrition, and psychological health.
• Why glycine can be “conditionally essential” for many people, even if you eat plenty of protein.
• The practical difference between muscle meat vs collagen-rich cuts (tendons, skin, connective tissue).
• Why some carnivore plates may unintentionally skew high methionine, and what to do about it.
• Simple ways to get more glycine: bone broth, collagen, gelatin, tougher cuts, and even straight glycine.
• Lab markers Paul mentions for checking glycine and glutathione status (including pyroglutamate).
• A real talk look at lab testing. Useful data, but easy to overinterpret without context.

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Meet Our Sponsor

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Disclaimer: These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. The contents of this podcast are for informational purposes only and do not constitute medical advice. The content presented here is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or dietary changes. Reliance on any information provided by this article is solely at your own risk.