06/23/2021
The key to longevity and health is optimizing your mitochondria. Poorly functioning mitochondria are found in most chronic diseases including obesity, diabetes, heart disease, dementia, Parkinson’s, chronic fatigue, and fibromyalgia. It might also show up as fatigue, brain fog, muscle pain, intolerance to exercise, and rapid aging.
Food is a great source of these and other phytonutrients that supercharge your mitochondria including blueberries, pomegranate seeds, grass fed beef and butter, broccoli, sardines, extra virgin olive oil, avocados and almonds. One of the best fuel sources for the mitochondria is MCT oil (medium-chain triglycerides). It is one of the cleanest burning preferred fuel sources for your mitochondria, and an excellent performance enhancer before exercise.
Protein provides us with the building blocks of life—helping us make muscle, connective tissue, hair, blood, enzymes, neurotransmitters, and more. Clearly, it’s important that we’re eating enough of this essential macronutrient if we want to feel strong, energized, and healthy.
But many of us may not be getting enough protein in our daily diets. The RDA, or recommended dietary allowance, is 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day. To easily calculate your own RDA for protein, just multiply your weight in pounds by 0.36. For someone who is 150 pounds, that would be 54 grams of protein.
Then there is the fact that the natural loss of muscle mass and strength as we age is correlated to all-cause mortality and linked to the incidence of many chronic diseases like cardiovascular disease and stroke, hypertension, insulin resistance, and type 2 diabetes. To make matters worse, these diseases increase protein degradation and reduce our ability to synthesize skeletal muscle, creating an even higher demand for protein. For these reasons, it’s especially important to eat more protein as we age.
Learning to feed your mitochondria well, using clean burning fuels, avoiding sugar and starch, increasing good fats, and ensuring optimal levels of key nutrients can provide a metabolic tune up.