When mitochondria work optimally, they produce adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the energy currency of cells. ATP supports every process in our bodies including those related to heart and brain health.
Without even realizing it, you could be unwittingly biohacking your mitochondria! From walking your dog to sipping coffee, many everyday actions support healthy mitochondria.
1. Eat Healthy Foods
Every nerdy biology class emphasizes the central function of mitochondria: providing energy for power-hungry cells like muscles and neurons. Mitochondria convert food and oxygen into energy (ATP) while producing CO2 as waste products.
When mitochondria aren’t functioning optimally, their failure can affect everything from athletic performance to mental wellbeing. A growing list of diseases and degenerative conditions have also been associated with mitochondrial dysfunction; but luckily it is possible to optimize them through simple lifestyle adjustments.
Start by eating healthily: whole, natural-color foods high in nutrients will support optimal mitochondria function. Avoid processed food, added sugars and alcohol as these will reduce inflammation that burdens mitochondria. Also include more leafy green vegetables, berries and antioxidant-rich foods in your diet; chlorella is another great biohack as it upregulates cytochrome C oxidase which allows mitochondria to produce more energy.
Other effective biohacks include intermittent fasting, restricting caloric intake and adhering to a ketogenic diet – practices which all boost ketones, stimulate mitochondrial biogenesis and facilitate mitophagy (cleanup of damaged mitochondria). Furthermore, adding intense exercise like sprinting or resistance training into your routine is another powerful way of getting your mitochondria working hard; sprinting or resistance training especially can produce lots of energy and heat that stimulate mitochondria. Cold exposure also acts as an excellent mitochondrial uncoupling biohack – both bathing or going for an ice plunge can do wonders in stimulating mitochondria.
Additional biohacks to consider for optimal mitochondrial health include getting sufficient sleep, managing stress levels and eliminating environmental toxins. Finally, making sure your gut microbiome is in great shape can maximize the impact of other biohacks. With all these elements in place you will have everything needed to begin optimizing mitochondrial health and enjoying vast improvements in energy levels.
2. Exercise Regularly
Exercise regularly if you want your mitochondria to remain at peak performance. Doing so will allow them to absorb oxygen and glucose for production of Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP), the source of energy used by your body. Plus, regular workouts help strengthen muscles against atrophying.
Endurance activities like running, swimming and cycling can help strengthen mitochondria. But other forms of exercise can also benefit your health and performance – for instance OsteoStrong offers “the world’s most effective bone and joint biohack,” which promises to increase strength within just seven minutes per week!
Other lifestyle habits can have a substantial effect on mitochondria, such as eating a balanced diet, sleeping enough and exercising regularly. Furthermore, practicing mindfulness and avoiding harmful substances may greatly impact your body’s ability to produce ATP.
While biohacking may appear daunting, you can use it to optimize your daily routine and live healthier. Before trying any new biohack, however, make sure it has been thoroughly scientifically evaluated to meet your unique needs and discuss it with your doctor beforehand.
If you’re keen on exploring ways to biohack your mitochondria, there are numerous resources online that can help. But keep in mind it’s best to start off small before diving deeper. Practice healthy eating, exercise and mindfulness before trying more advanced biohacks like them and always monitor results if testing more radical techniques; otherwise you could end up doing more damage than good.
3. Get Enough Sleep
Restorative sleep is vital to overall health, and can help enhance mitochondrial function. Mitochondria are structures inside cells that produce ATP energy that cells use for functions like cell repair, growth and regulation of hormones and enzymes. When our mitochondria are functioning at optimal capacity, they provide us with steady sources of energy throughout the day; as we age however, their efficiency decreases, leading to fatigue, pain, vision issues and mood disorders.
As a result, some people seek ways to enhance mitochondrial function; this is when biohacking becomes popular. Biohacking refers to making small but intentional lifestyle and diet changes in order to enhance one’s health and well-being; biohackers typically focus on reducing inflammation and decreasing biological age by making lifestyle adjustments that include eating the appropriate food, drinking plenty of water, exercising regularly, and getting enough restful sleep.
While some biohacks may be dangerous if taken too far, others can be implemented safely and effortlessly. Common techniques involve tracking your health using wearable devices like smartwatches and fitness trackers and making appropriate diet adjustments accordingly. More advanced biohacks may even require visiting with a physician who can guide them through additional options.
As a biohacker, it’s key to find an approach that fits you best. Your goals should be specific, measurable, and time-bound for maximum effectiveness – whether that means improving sleep, drinking more water or taking supplements; finding biohacks designed specifically for you will help ensure a happier, longer life!
4. Reduce Stress
Up to 99 percent of chronic diseases are metabolic, not genetic, and caused by dysfunctional mitochondria. When functioning normally, mitochondria provide cells and organ systems with enough energy for proper function – when they don’t provide this energy they start malfunctioning causing symptoms like fatigue, brain fog, pain, weakness, vision problems and depression to appear.
Mitochondria are particularly vulnerable to nutritional deficiencies, environmental toxins and oxidative damage. Mitochondria are responsible for producing reactive oxygen species (ROS) within cells which then release these free radicals as ROS leak into other parts of their respective cell bodies causing what’s known as “oxidative stress,” leading to cell aging, chronic diseases or even death.
But moderate levels of ROS can also be beneficial, promoting cell health and longevity by acting as a “Morse code” between cell nuclei to regulate metabolic processes and increase lifespan – this concept is known as Hormesis.
Certain factors can damage mitochondria, including high blood pressure, sugar intake, lack of exercise, smoking and environmental toxins. When these factors combine with one another they can disrupt the electron transport chain which produces ATP for cell energy needs and cause oxidative stress leading to symptoms like inflammation, heart disease diabetes and brain fog as well as certain medications or illnesses impacting mitochondria function. To maintain good mitochondria health it is best to limit sugary food consumption while exercising regularly while supplementation may also help support them.
5. Take Supplements
The body requires energy for all its processes to function, and mitochondria serve as the power plants of cells throughout tissues and organs to supply this fuel. By processing food and oxygen into adenosine triphosphate (ATP), they convert food to energy while creating carbon dioxide as byproduct.
Due to mitochondria’s inability to store ATP, it’s vital that they produce as much ATP as possible every second of every day – particularly for power-hungry cells such as muscle and neurons that require power for their daily functions. Without enough ATP produced from mitochondria’s production processes, organ systems and tissues cannot function optimally which could result in chronic illnesses, symptoms and even death.
Nearly all diseases can be linked back to dysfunctional mitochondria. Many of these illnesses can be treated or prevented by improving mitochondrial health; to do this effectively it’s crucial that individuals eat healthy foods, exercise regularly and get plenty of restful sleep as well as treating any underlying conditions that contribute to mitochondrial dysfunction.
Supplements can play an essential role in supporting mitochondrial function and health. The best supplements to take for mitochondrial health include those that boost cell metabolism, reduce oxidative stress, enhance autophagy, or boost autophagy – such as acetyl-L-carnitine, coenzyme Q10, alpha lipoic acid magnesium and selenomethionine. Niacin, omega 3s Methylene Blue monoamine oxidase inhibitor), melatonin, Spermidine as well as polyphenols such as quercetin may also aid mitochondrial health.
Mitochondria are crucially important to our overall health. Unfortunately, they can become compromised through various sources and by taking steps to restore mitochondrial health, we can ensure they continue providing us with enough energy and keep us strong and healthy.
