Steve-O Discloses Whey Protein Addiction on Podcast
Stunt performer Steve-O stated during an interview on his podcast, Steve-O’s Wild Ride!, that he feels ashamed to consume whey protein because he considers himself an animal guy. Plant Based News reported that the discussion took place during an episode featuring YouTuber Mike Varshavski, who is widely known as Doctor Mike.
During the conversation, Steve-O described his addiction to Barebells protein bars. He estimated that he consumes between two and four of the snacks each day, citing their low sugar content as a primary reason they fit into his low-sugar diet.
Dietary Shifts From Veganism to Pescatarianism
Steve-O rose to fame through his work on the long-running Jackass franchise. Around 2010, he adopted a vegan lifestyle for health and animal rights reasons. During that period, he publicly opposed animal cruelty and noted in his 2011 memoir that he had stopped wearing fur and leather, though he later voiced criticism against militant vegans.
By 2018, Steve-O transitioned away from a strict vegan diet, choosing to eliminate red meat and poultry while continuing to consume fish, eggs, and dairy. On the podcast episode with Doctor Mike, he clarified his current eating habits.
“I was vegan for a time,” Steve-O said on the show. “Now I’m strictly pescatarian.”
Environmental Impact of Global Fisheries
While Steve-O avoids land-based meat and poultry, his pescatarian diet includes seafood, an industry that carries significant environmental consequences. According to data from The World Bank, nearly 90 percent of global marine fish stocks are classified as overfished or fully exploited.
Global seafood production has quadrupled over the past sixty years, resulting in humans consuming roughly twice as much fish as they did six decades ago. Commercial fishing operations produce approximately 200 million tonnes of fish and seafood annually. In addition to target species, the global fishing industry catches and kills more than 1.6 million non-target animals, including birds, whales, seals, and turtles, alongside 1.1 million tonnes of sharks and rays caught as bycatch.
Plant-Based Alternatives in Protein Snacks
The protein bars that sparked Steve-O’s comments are manufactured by Barebells, a Swedish protein brand. While the brand utilizes whey protein in several of its products, it also manufactures at least four vegan flavor varieties formulated with combinations of soy protein, pea protein, and wheat gluten.
Despite the availability of plant-based alternatives, Steve-O admitted on the podcast that he struggles to avoid the dairy-based option.
“It’s a lot of bars,” he said during the interview. “I’m ashamed to admit that it’s whey protein, and as an animal guy, […] I’m not a vegan anymore, but like I’m pescatarian and so whey is not pescatarian, but like I can’t help it. They’re that delicious.”
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