Mitochondria

Fuel

Regardless of any diet, in general, the ideal order of food intake is vegetables, which line the gut with fiber first and slow glucose absorption, followed by proteins and fats, and finally starches and carbohydrates. Fruit is the best dessert on an empty stomach, as fiber slows down the absorption of sugar in the intestine. Glucose that is not immediately consumed is either stored in the muscle cells (partially in the liver) in the form of glycogen or, in case of excess, is turned into body fat, which is helped by the production of insulin, which ideally increases with the amount of glucose released into the blood. Excess fatty acids are stored in the body as fat.

Proteins

Proteins serve as building stone for the formation of muscles, tissues and organs. Proteins are contained in meat, but they are also represented in vegetables and fruits. While all the necessary amino acids can be represented in one type of meat, in the case of vegetables it is necessary to have a more varied menu. As an example, cereals are low in lysine but higher in methionine, and legumes are low in methionine but higher in lysine. The body always has to break down proteins into individual amino acids, from which it then selects what it needs. We cannot store unused proteins in the body. Nitrogen is taken from excess proteins in the body, which the liver converts into ammonia, and the kidneys excrete it. The remaining amino acids are converted into glucose (50% / 4) and fats (50%).

ATP

Within eight hours, the body will run out of glucose, which can then be replaced by burning stored fats – fat is oxidized, free fatty acids are formed again, and the liver can start producing ketones from fatty acids – a small soluble fat, causing a state of ketosis. Fatty acids are a good source of fuel, but because of their size, they cannot nourish the brain. After 12 hours, there is a need to produce ketones, which are able to nourish the brain instead of glucose, before we take in more glucose again in the future. Without ketones or glucose, the brain begins to die. Without fatty acids for ketones, the only fuel left for the brain is the conversion of muscle mass to glucose. Muscle mass can be exhausted within a week. The human body cannot make glucose from stored fat. Ketones are able to nourish the body to 30%, the rest must be fatty acids and glucose. The brain is not able to function long-term only on ketones, at least 30% must be glucose.

Mitochondria

Ketones are a signal to the mitochondria that glucose will not be available soon. Mitochondria will reduce energy production and start producing more heat. Normally 30% of the fuel goes out unprocessed as heat production, but as ketones increase, fuel consumption to generate heat increases. Generation of energy wears out mitochondria, so by reducing energy production, they try to preserve themself. Next, the mitochondria begin to proliferate in order to divide up the work to reduce their wear and tear again and increase their endurance. So the goal is to last a long time and tighten the life of the cell together with a lack of glucose, but at the cost of increased fuel consumption, thereby reducing the amount of fuel left for building muscle at the cost of better performance and faster recovery. Caffeine and polyphenols from plants have an effect on mitochondria like ketones, but the best known and strongest effect is known from DNP (Dinitrophenol).

MCT

Coconut oil and goat’s milk contain more MCTs: Medium-chain triglycerides, which are esters with molecules linked to glycerol = this is a fat from which the liver easily produces ketones.

Polyphenols

Mitochondria in plants are called chloroplasts, and polyphenols in plants work to increase the stamina of chloroplasts to withstand sunlight. Polyphenols in the human gut are digested by bacteria into polyphenols that we are able to absorb, which then enter the mitochondria and, as with chloroplasts, force our mitochondria to reduce their wear and tear. Vegetables in food therefore increase the resistance of cells with the help of polyphenols and have been proven to increase longevity.

Fasting

If we were to stay in a keto state 24 hours a day, we would not only burn all the available fuel, but we would also start burning muscles. The recommended window is 6-8 hours of eating in the frequency and size of portions as needed, and the rest of the time 16-18 hours of fasting.

Cyanide

Cyanide poison prevents mitochondria from processing oxygen, which stops fuel production and causes cells to die. It is the cyanide experiment on rats that shows that cancer does not process oxygen, but feeds on fermentation, because the cancer cells remained intact.

Glutamine

The amino acid glutamine is an important source of energy for intestinal and immune cells. It also helps maintain a barrier between the inside of the gut and the rest of the body, protecting against leaky gut. Glutamine is an important metabolic fuel that helps rapidly growing cells meet the increased demand for energy by providing not only a nitrogen source for amino acid and nucleotide biosynthesis, but also a carbon source. In the state of ketosis, the presence of glutamine remains the Achilles‘ heel for the comprehensive crippling of cancer cell growth. There are currently single-site trials using glutamine-inhibiting drugs on sick people in a state of ketosis at very low doses, which only paralyzes the immune system cells, but severely slows down the growth of the fermenting cells. After the inhibitor has responded, the immune system is able to remove any dead cells, and another dose cycle can be performed.