Mitochondria are the Energy powerhouses of our bodies, and they hold the key to recovery. Check out some new mind-blowing reports about this below.

Three phases of recovery

Mitochondria, the tiny energy producers found deep within the cells of your body, may hold the key to recovering from chronic diseases and infections.

While their primary function is to generate energy to power cells, scientists like Dr. Robert Naviaux of UC San Diego’s Mitochondrial and Metabolic Disease Center have highlighted that it’s time to start thinking of mitochondria beyond just the powerhouses of the cell.

During infections, chronic diseases or injuries, mitochondria produce less energy and become inflamed and oxidative.

This can lead to fatigue, lethargy, and organ dysfunction due to reduced energy output and the body’s response to inflammation and oxidative stress.

According to mainstream medicine, when mitochondria aren’t producing as much energy as they should, it’s referred to as “mitochondrial dysfunction.”

However, some scientists argue that this labeling is not accurate as the mitochondria might be responding to changes in cellular signaling, which can be considered a protective and essential new function of mitochondria under conditions of cell danger. Therefore, it is not a breakdown of the mitochondria, but rather a response that is essential to the healing process.

“The decreased ability to make energy could be an adaptation for something else,” Martin Picard, who holds a doctorate in mitochondrial biology and is an associate professor of behavioral medicine in psychiatry and neurology at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, said.

It has been suggested that mitochondria play a role in facilitating the body’s healing process by becoming inflammatory and oxidative at the start of any infection, injury, or toxic exposure.

However, if this normal acute signaling persists, it may lead to chronic disease symptoms due to cells becoming overly sensitive to such signaling, according to Dr. Naviaux.

Dr. Naviaux also outlined a three-Phase process that cells must go through to heal from injury, which he called the cell danger response (CDR).

Phase 1: Inflammation

Damaged cells release danger signals, disrupting the connections with surrounding cells to prevent the spread of infection or toxins. Mitochondria become inflamed and undergo oxidative stress. “The job of a [phase 1] mitochondria is to create oxidants.

This initiates the first phase of the healing cycle. It is an essential kind of cellular stress that diverts energy and resources needed to fight the infection and recover from the stress,” Dr. Naviaux said.

Phase 2: Proliferation

After the immediate danger has passed, the body produces new cells to replace the damaged ones. These cells switch from anaerobic respiration, which doesn’t require oxygen, to aerobic glycolysis, which means they start consuming oxygen again.

The energy produced during this process is crucial for creating new building blocks for the production of genes, proteins, fats, and cellular material to replace the cells lost during infection or injury. However, it’s important to note that most of the energy produced during this time is still generated in the absence of mitochondria.

Phase 3: Differentiation

Mature cells educate newly formed cells. Cells reconnect and mitochondrial metabolism returns to baseline after inflammation subsides. After completing phase 3, cells return to their healthy state.

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