Day 225 of 365 - Cell Batteries
No, not your cellphone; the ones in your body.
You may remember drawing a diagram for science class in elementary school. It showed what was inside a cell. One of the important items was an organelle called the mitochondrion. We learned that it was the furnace or battery of the cell, producing energy.
Contrary to what I thought as a school kid, that there was just one of these batteries in each cell, it turns out they occur in different concentrations in various tissues in every cell except red blood cells. They do provide most of the cell energy for many different metabolic purposes, and they need oxygen, glucose and fat to do this.
The way they produce this energy is via the Krebs cycle, which any of you organic chemistry buffs can feel free to regale us about, a big jump from elementary school to university classes. Aside from energy production, mitochondria serve many other cell functions. So what? Don't the cells just do their jobs automatically, without us having to do anything? Not really.
When we experience symptoms like fatigue, weakness, balance and coordination issues, digestive problems, hormonal issues or organ dysfunction, it likely indicates mitochondrial dysfunction. When the mitochondria are not working well, there is decreased energy production and antioxidant production and there is increased oxidative stress and metabolic waste for the cells to deal with. The bottom line of this shows up in experiencing the kinds of symptoms mentioned.
There is a lab test, called an organic acid test, which is a urine test that looks at many biomarkers of metabolic function. It can tell us how well our mitochondria are doing their jobs.
As we age, more mitochondria die off and less new ones are produced, another sad fact of our bodies getting older. However, there are strategies we can implement to bolster the charge of our cellular batteries. We can do things that give the mitochondria those nutrients they need to do their jobs, as well as providing optimal circumstances for them to multiply.
1) Eat nutrient dense foods, including greens, vegetables, herbs, fruits, healthy fats and clean protein. Decrease intake of inflammatory foods like sugar, carbs, processed foods and unhealthy fats.
2) Get regular movement and exercise. Aerobic, resistance and interval training provide improvement in mitochondrial health. Study has found that interval training made a very significant difference in mitochondrial capacity in both younger and older participants. Interval training means alternating bursts of intense activity with lower intensity ones. Even doing a walk with alternate fast and slow paces achieves this.
3) Reduce stress and improve sleep. Use techniques like meditation, breath work and time in nature for their restorative benefits.
4) Intermittent or extended fasting. During fasting periods, the mitochondria purge the cells of damage and debris, eliminate very damaged cells, and increase the formation of new mitochondria within cells.
So, more good reasons, this time from the perspective of the cell function level, to do the things we know are good for our health and vitality, especially as we get older.
You may remember drawing a diagram for science class in elementary school. It showed what was inside a cell. One of the important items was an organelle called the mitochondrion. We learned that it was the furnace or battery of the cell, producing energy.
Contrary to what I thought as a school kid, that there was just one of these batteries in each cell, it turns out they occur in different concentrations in various tissues in every cell except red blood cells. They do provide most of the cell energy for many different metabolic purposes, and they need oxygen, glucose and fat to do this.
The way they produce this energy is via the Krebs cycle, which any of you organic chemistry buffs can feel free to regale us about, a big jump from elementary school to university classes. Aside from energy production, mitochondria serve many other cell functions. So what? Don't the cells just do their jobs automatically, without us having to do anything? Not really.
When we experience symptoms like fatigue, weakness, balance and coordination issues, digestive problems, hormonal issues or organ dysfunction, it likely indicates mitochondrial dysfunction. When the mitochondria are not working well, there is decreased energy production and antioxidant production and there is increased oxidative stress and metabolic waste for the cells to deal with. The bottom line of this shows up in experiencing the kinds of symptoms mentioned.
There is a lab test, called an organic acid test, which is a urine test that looks at many biomarkers of metabolic function. It can tell us how well our mitochondria are doing their jobs.
As we age, more mitochondria die off and less new ones are produced, another sad fact of our bodies getting older. However, there are strategies we can implement to bolster the charge of our cellular batteries. We can do things that give the mitochondria those nutrients they need to do their jobs, as well as providing optimal circumstances for them to multiply.
1) Eat nutrient dense foods, including greens, vegetables, herbs, fruits, healthy fats and clean protein. Decrease intake of inflammatory foods like sugar, carbs, processed foods and unhealthy fats.
2) Get regular movement and exercise. Aerobic, resistance and interval training provide improvement in mitochondrial health. Study has found that interval training made a very significant difference in mitochondrial capacity in both younger and older participants. Interval training means alternating bursts of intense activity with lower intensity ones. Even doing a walk with alternate fast and slow paces achieves this.
3) Reduce stress and improve sleep. Use techniques like meditation, breath work and time in nature for their restorative benefits.
4) Intermittent or extended fasting. During fasting periods, the mitochondria purge the cells of damage and debris, eliminate very damaged cells, and increase the formation of new mitochondria within cells.
So, more good reasons, this time from the perspective of the cell function level, to do the things we know are good for our health and vitality, especially as we get older.
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