You've probably heard mitochondria described as the "powerhouses of the cell", and for good reason.
These tiny structures inside most of our cells are responsible for producing much of the energy our bodies need to function.
From the beating of your heart and movement of your muscles to brain activity and everyday cellular processes, your body relies on a constant supply of energy.
But mitochondrial health isn't simply about "having more energy."
It refers to the ability of mitochondria to carry out their normal cellular functions efficiently, including converting nutrients from food into a form of energy your cells can use.
So how do mitochondria actually produce energy, what nutrients are involved, and what can influence mitochondrial function as we age?
What Are Mitochondria?
Mitochondria are specialised structures found inside most cells in the human body.
One of their primary roles is converting energy from the food we eat into ATP, or adenosine triphosphate.
ATP acts as a readily available source of cellular energy.
Your cells continuously use ATP to power biological processes, from muscle contraction and nerve signalling to maintaining normal cellular function.
Tissues with particularly high energy requirements contain large numbers of mitochondria. These include:
- The heart
- Brain
- Skeletal muscles
But mitochondria do much more than generate ATP.
They're also involved in metabolism, cellular signalling, calcium regulation and processes related to oxidative balance.
How Do Mitochondria Produce Energy?
The process of producing cellular energy involves several interconnected metabolic pathways.
When carbohydrates, fats and proteins are broken down, their components can enter pathways that ultimately help generate ATP.
One of the final stages occurs inside the mitochondria through a series of protein complexes collectively known as the electron transport chain.
Electrons are transferred through these complexes, creating conditions that allow ATP synthase to generate ATP.
This process is known as oxidative phosphorylation.
Several nutrients and naturally occurring compounds are involved in these pathways, either directly or as cofactors that allow normal metabolic reactions to occur.
What Does "Mitochondrial Health" Actually Mean?
"Mitochondrial health" isn't a single medical measurement, nor does it simply mean having more mitochondria.
More broadly, the term describes how effectively mitochondria perform their normal functions and respond to the body's changing energy requirements.
Mitochondrial function can be influenced by many factors, including:
- Ageing
- Physical activity
- Nutrition
- Sleep
- Metabolic health
- Oxidative stress
- Smoking and other lifestyle factors
Supporting mitochondrial health therefore isn't about finding one "mitochondrial nutrient."
It's about supporting the broader nutritional and lifestyle foundations required for normal cellular energy metabolism.
Key Nutrients and Compounds Involved in Cellular Energy
Different nutrients participate in different stages of energy metabolism.
Understanding these roles helps explain why mitochondrial energy production depends on an interconnected network rather than a single nutrient.
Coenzyme Q10 and Ubiquinol
Coenzyme Q10, commonly known as CoQ10, is a naturally occurring compound found throughout the body.
It plays an important role within the mitochondrial electron transport chain, where it helps transfer electrons during the process used to generate ATP.
CoQ10 exists primarily in two interchangeable forms:
Ubiquinone, the oxidised form.
Ubiquinol, the reduced form.
The body naturally converts between these forms as part of the CoQ10 cycle.
Ubiquinol also has antioxidant activity, which means it participates in processes that help protect cells from oxidative damage.
Rather than thinking of ubiquinol as something that simply "gives you energy", its role is better understood as part of the biological machinery involved in normal mitochondrial energy production.
Magnesium
Magnesium is an essential mineral involved in hundreds of biochemical reactions throughout the body, including reactions involved in energy metabolism.
Its relationship with ATP is particularly important.
Inside cells, ATP commonly functions in association with magnesium. This magnesium-ATP complex is involved in numerous enzyme-driven reactions.
Magnesium therefore contributes to:
- Normal energy metabolism
- Normal muscle function
- Normal nervous system function
- Normal protein synthesis
This illustrates an important point about cellular energy: producing and using ATP depends on adequate availability of essential nutrients.
B Vitamins
B vitamins are another important part of cellular energy metabolism.
Several B vitamins act as precursors to cofactors that help enzymes convert carbohydrates, fats and proteins into usable energy.
For example, vitamin B2, or riboflavin, is used to form flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) and flavin mononucleotide (FMN).
These molecules participate in electron-transfer reactions involved in mitochondrial metabolism.
Other B vitamins are involved at different points throughout energy-yielding metabolic pathways.
This doesn't mean consuming additional B vitamins automatically produces more energy. Instead, adequate intake allows these normal metabolic processes to function as intended.
Creatine and the ATP Energy System
Creatine plays a different role from compounds directly involved in the mitochondrial electron transport chain.
Inside skeletal muscle and other tissues, creatine can be stored as phosphocreatine.
When energy demand suddenly increases, phosphocreatine can donate a phosphate group to help rapidly regenerate ATP.
This system is particularly important during short periods of high energy demand, such as resistance training, sprinting and other high-intensity activity.
It's important to distinguish this process from mitochondrial ATP production itself.
Creatine doesn't act as a component of the mitochondrial electron transport chain. Instead, the creatine-phosphocreatine system helps buffer and rapidly regenerate available ATP.
NAD+: Another Important Part of Cellular Energy Metabolism
Another molecule receiving considerable attention in cellular energy research is NAD+, or nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide.
NAD+ is a naturally occurring coenzyme found in cells throughout the body.
It plays an essential role in redox reactions involved in metabolism, including processes that allow energy from nutrients to ultimately contribute to ATP production.
NAD+ can exist in oxidised and reduced forms, allowing it to transfer electrons during metabolic reactions.
Beyond energy metabolism, NAD+ is also involved in several other cellular processes.
What Are NMN and NR?
NMN, or nicotinamide mononucleotide, and NR, or nicotinamide riboside, are compounds involved in pathways the body can use to produce NAD+.
Both are therefore commonly described as NAD+ precursors.
This has made NMN and NR major areas of research in cellular metabolism and healthy ageing.
Human studies have demonstrated that supplementation with certain NAD+ precursors can influence NAD+-related measures.
However, an important distinction needs to be made.
Increasing NAD+ biomarkers does not automatically mean that a compound has been shown to extend lifespan, reverse ageing or improve every aspect of mitochondrial function.
Researchers are still investigating how changes in NAD+ availability translate into meaningful health outcomes in humans.
Current evidence therefore supports discussing NMN, NR and NAD+ as part of an evolving area of cellular biology rather than as treatments for ageing or mitochondrial dysfunction.
Does NAD+ Decline With Age?
Changes in NAD+ metabolism have been observed with ageing and are an active area of scientific research.
Researchers are investigating how factors including NAD+ synthesis, consumption and recycling may change over time and what those changes mean for human health.
This has contributed to growing interest in NAD+ precursors such as NMN and NR.
However, ageing is biologically complex.
No single molecule explains the ageing process, and maintaining healthy mitochondrial function involves far more than targeting NAD+ alone.
Exercise and Mitochondrial Health
If there's one lifestyle factor that deserves particular attention when discussing mitochondrial health, it's physical activity.
Regular exercise creates increased energy demands that encourage the body to adapt.
One of these adaptations is mitochondrial biogenesis, the process through which cells increase their mitochondrial capacity.
Aerobic activities such as:
- Walking
- Cycling
- Swimming
- Running
place sustained demands on cellular energy systems.
Resistance training provides a different stimulus, supporting muscle mass, strength and physical function.
Rather than viewing one form of exercise as universally superior, combining aerobic activity, resistance training and regular everyday movement provides a well-rounded approach to supporting physical and metabolic health.
The Foundations of Mitochondrial Health
Mitochondria don't operate independently from the rest of your health.
The same habits that support cardiovascular, metabolic and physical health also help create an environment that supports normal cellular function.
Move Regularly
Aim to combine everyday movement with aerobic activity and resistance training.
Exercise is one of the most extensively studied lifestyle factors associated with mitochondrial adaptations.
Eat a Nutrient-Dense Diet
Normal energy metabolism requires vitamins, minerals, amino acids, fatty acids and other nutrients.
A varied diet containing vegetables, fruit, wholegrains, quality protein sources, legumes, nuts, seeds and healthy fats helps provide the nutrients required for normal metabolic processes.
Prioritise Sleep
Sleep supports recovery and many aspects of normal physiological function.
Maintaining consistent sleep habits is therefore part of the broader foundation for metabolic and cellular health.
Support Metabolic Health
Cardiovascular health, blood glucose regulation, physical activity and healthy body composition are interconnected with broader metabolic health.
Supporting these areas also contributes to the environment in which normal cellular energy metabolism occurs.
Don't Smoke
Smoking exposes the body to numerous harmful compounds and increases oxidative stress.
Avoiding smoking is an important part of supporting cardiovascular, respiratory and overall cellular health.
The Bottom Line
Mitochondrial health is ultimately about supporting the body's ability to carry out normal cellular functions, including producing and using energy efficiently.
Mitochondrial energy production is complex. CoQ10 participates in the electron transport chain, magnesium is closely associated with ATP-dependent reactions, B vitamins provide important metabolic cofactors, creatine helps rapidly regenerate available ATP, and NAD+ participates in cellular metabolic pathways.
NMN and NR are NAD+ precursors that continue to be investigated for their effects on NAD+ metabolism and broader human health outcomes.
But there is no single nutrient, compound or "mitochondrial health" solution.
The bigger picture includes regular exercise, adequate nutrition, quality sleep, metabolic health and avoiding smoking.
As research into mitochondrial biology and NAD+ continues to evolve, understanding how these pathways actually work can help separate established cellular biology from emerging longevity claims.
References
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National Institutes of Health, Office of Dietary Supplements. Dietary Supplements for Primary Mitochondrial Disorders: Health Professional Fact Sheet.
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Bogan KL, Brenner C. Nicotinic acid, nicotinamide, and nicotinamide riboside: A molecular evaluation of NAD+ precursor vitamins in human nutrition. Annual Review of Nutrition. 2008;28:115-130.
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Rajman L, Chwalek K, Sinclair DA. Therapeutic potential of NAD-boosting molecules: The in vivo evidence. Cell Metabolism. 2018;27(3):529-547.
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Fang EF, et al. NAD+ in aging: Molecular mechanisms and translational implications. Trends in Molecular Medicine. 2017;23(10):899-916.
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Yoshino J, Baur JA, Imai SI. NAD+ intermediates: The biology and therapeutic potential of NMN and NR. Cell Metabolism. 2018;27(3):513-528.
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Vinten KT, et al. NAD+ precursor supplementation in human ageing: Clinical evidence and challenges. Nature Metabolism. 2025;7:1974-1990.
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World Health Organization. WHO Guidelines on Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2020.
