Fatigue
The reason why we get tired is because our mitochondria cannot produce enough energy for our daily requirements. Two-thirds of the energy we produce is to keep us alive such as our heart beating, our lungs breathing and all the chemical reactions that go on every second. The remaining third is for us to enjoy life – go to work, go to the gym, go out with friends, etc. When this remaining third is not available then we suffer from something called chronic fatigue; when we are tired all the time and for no reason. When this occurs, it means that the mitochondria in our cells are not functioning properly.
Mitochondria
Mitochondria are the powerhouses of our cells and every cell in our body has them. Mitochondria make energy by producing ATP (adenosine tri-phosphate) and ATP is energy currency for us to utilise throughout our body. If the mitochondria do not produce ATP efficiently then fatigue will result. To get our mitochondria functioning at their optimum we need to firstly give them the right fuel, secondly remove any blocking toxins, thirdly get the thyroid and adrenal glands working effectively.
Fuel for mitochondria
The best fuel for mitochondria are ketones which are produced when your liver breaks down fats from our diet. Contrary to myth or popular belief, ketones are a much needed and essential healing energy source in our cells. The entire body uses ketones in a more safe and effective way than the energy source coming from carbohydrates. Our bodies produce ketones when we have a low carb diet.
Blocking toxins
If a paleo-ketogenic diet does not completely fix the problem, this implies that there is a toxin blocking the mitochondria. This could be a number of things including lead, mercury or even BPA (Bisphenol A – an industrial chemical that has been used to make certain plastics and resins). However, one of our most common toxins in our bodies is bad bacteria that live, fermenting in our small intestine. These bacteria should not be there, but reside there when we eat a diet high in carbohydrates. Bad bacteria love to feast on sugar, and as all carbohydrates are broken down into sugar, if we have too many carbohydrates in our diet, we end up with an upper fermenting gut which is very toxic. Removing toxins takes time but there is a series of processes that we can go through to remove them and these are covered in the 28-day programme.
Thyroid and Adrenal Glands
Your thyroid and adrenals work together to match energy delivery to energy demand. In summary, thyroid hormones set our basal metabolic rate and adrenal hormones are responsible for the fine tuning in response to environmental demands, such as running for the bus or from the saber-tooth tiger! If your thyroid is going slow, then your adrenals gear up and vice versa. If adrenal hormones are used because thyroid hormones are not available then you will suffer “tired but wired” symptoms. This may be a particular problem if you are trying to get into ketosis because with a ketogenic diet your thyroid hormones are used to burn fat and, if your thyroid is going slow any way, your body will switch to adrenal hormones to fat burn. As a result, you will suffer the symptoms of high adrenalin which are usually associated with low blood sugar. This is called ketogenic hypoglycaemia. You will run into even more serious problems when both thyroid and adrenals are down and this combination is very common in people with chronic fatigue syndrome.
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