- Brad Gloyeske, D.C.
Getting Collagen on a Carnivore Diet
Have you considered collagen supplementation within the context of a carnivore diet? This topic is in vogue right now, and there are products all over the place. Think of collagen as the glue that holds your body together. Here are a few of the benefits that collagen provides for your body:
High in amino acids like proline, glycine, hydroxyproline, hyaluronic acid, and chondroitin sulfate. These are building blocks that aren’t found in the typical “muscle meats.” Rather, they are found in the tendons, joints, skin, and “gristle” of animals (aka things we typically don’t eat).
Supports healthy joints, including those near and dear to our SPINE including our discs between each vertebra. Think of collagen as glucosamine on steroids. Super joint support.
Supports healthy skin, hair, and nails. We’ve received feedback from several people, and have even experienced this personally, about hair growing back faster and/or thicker once they begin taking collagen regularly. Take that for what it’s worth, being it’s anecdotal.
Supports gut health which is vital for immune health and any digestive issues like food intolerances.
Great for pre or post-workout recovery. Studies have shown that collagen peptides given before or during workouts go directly to the areas of the body that are stressed the most during the workout.
Great for pregnancy and postpartum to help support joints and ligaments that get lax during childbirth.
As you can see, collagen provides many benefits. Within the context of a carnivore diet, it can provide a nice balance between methionine and glycine. Generally, you want a nice balance between these two amino acids.
Ancestrally speaking, if we ate an entire animal, we likely consumed parts of the hide, bone, ligaments, tendons, etc., that provided us with collagen and glycine. That naturally would’ve provided us a balance with methionine, the most prevalent amino acid found in muscle meat. This is one shortcoming of the modern day carnivore approach. A lot of people are just eating muscle meat without any collagenous components of the animals.
So if you’re considering the carnivore diet, be informed. Adding some sort of collagen into the diet in the form of collagen powder, like one in our STORE, or just simple bone broth can really make the carnivore diet that much better.
