Explained: What is mitochondria and diet to strengthen it

An important aspect of cellular health is mitochondrial health. Every cell within us has tiny energy factories called — Mitochondria. They produce energy (from oxygen and food) in the form of ATP (adenosine triphosphate). This is what fuels every action of ours — walking, thinking, talking, digesting, cleansing, healing, repairing, and so on. A tired and lethargic person will have less ATP being produced by the body than an energetic person. Tiredness, lethargy, and fatigue are all indicators of your bad mitochondrial health. 

Not many understand that their health problems could just be stemming from mitochondrial dysfunction.

If your mitochondria is not functioning the right way, you will not only feel lethargic all day, but also put on weight, lose hair, and be prone to early ageing. This is the power of mitochondria and its health. 

What destroys mitochondrial health?

• Nutritional deficiencies and depriving your body of key nutrients like vitamins and minerals by following fad diets

• Environmental toxins like pollution, heavy metals, BPAs, parabens,

  phthalates plastics, and toxins in cosmetics)

• Viruses and infections — studies have revealed Covid is known to cause some dysfunction in the mitochondria

• Oxidative stress and inflammation lead to a leakage of oxygen from

  the cells

• Smoking, living in a polluted environment

• Excessive alcohol consumption — alcohol depletes NADH (a key nutrient and mitochondrial health)

• Strong medical procedures like chemo, radiation, and antibiotics

• Overuse of recreational drugs 

• Statins, that too in the absence of CoQ10 and Selenium 

• Chronic sleep deprivation 

Lifestyle changes to build mitochondrial health

• Decrease toxins exposure. A lot of it may not be in your control, but do what you can in terms of switching to cleaner products, eating chemical-free, and fasting to cleanse your body

• Keep the health of your eliminatory organs in tip-top shape. A compromised function of even one of our eliminatory organs (skin, liver, kidneys, colon, lungs) can lead to toxin overload

• Limit junk foods. Opt for clean, wholesome, and real foods

• Ask your doctor to prescribe CoQ10 and Selenium, if on statins

• Switch from refined to cold pressed oils — refined oils are

  pro-inflammatory and create an imbalance of the omega 3 and omega 6 ratio

• Build lean muscle. Muscle is metabolically active tissue. Mitochondria are densely populated in lean muscle. More muscle means more mitochondria and stronger mitochondrial health

• Move, but do not over-exercise if recovering from an infection, surgery, or illness; go slow

• Adequate hydration — even a one per cent drop in hydration can affect cellular health remarkably, including your mitochondria

• Learn to manage chronic stress — more stress equals more inflammation

Foods and supplements that help

Besides adopting the above lifestyle changes, here are some important mitochondrial nutrients and its natural sources. Please make an informed decision. The supplemental form of these is to be prescribed under expert guidance only

CoQ10 — for ATP production: Organ meat, chicken, red meat, fish, crucifers, spinach, oranges, strawberries, legumes, nuts, and seeds (pistachios)

Alpha Lipoic Acid — for energy transportation: Spinach, meats, crucifers, cooked tomatoes

Carnitine — for energy transportation: Red meat, fish, crucifers, chicken, avocados, beans, ethically sourced dairy  

Resveratrol — antioxidant effect: Good quality red wine (give drinking a break if recovering), grapes, 70% & above dark chocolate, peanuts, cacao, cranberries, pistachios 

N-Acetyl Cysteine — promotes glutathione production: Crucifers, meats, onions, legumes 

Vitamin E — antioxidant effect: almonds, sunflower seeds, spinach peanuts, beets, bell peppers

NADH — needed for ATP production: exercise (light intensity works), yoga, walking, listening to your body, crucifers, B-vitamins, whole grains, mushrooms, fish, leafy greens

Magnesium — for mitochondrial health: dark chocolate, avocado, cacao, lady greens

(Luke Coutinho, Holistic Nutrition and Lifestyle — Integrative and Lifestyle Medicine, Founder of You Care - All about YOU by Luke Coutinho)