Caffeine vs MitoQ

Caffeine

If you’re an avid coffee drinker, you’ll probably know first-hand that caffeine is a stimulant that is naturally found in coffee, tea and even chocolate. It’s fast-acting and it works to stimulate the central nervous system, but it also triggers a cascade of biological effects throughout the body as a whole.

What caffeine does in the body

Caffeine blocks the effects of adenosine, a chemical that increases over the day and makes you feel tired – thus encouraging that energy boost you’re probably all too familiar with. Melatonin is the hormone that promotes sleep, and it rises in the second half of the day to prepare the body for a good night’s rest. But in the presence of caffeine, melatonin levels decrease, making it harder to sync with your body’s natural sleep/wake cycle.

As a stimulant, caffeine also increases the production of cortisol – the body’s chief stress hormone that naturally peaks in the morning and starts to decline as the day continues. This means that a) if you consume coffee first thing in the morning, you’re doubling up on your daily dose of cortisol – which isn’t great for your adrenal glands. And b) if you decide to have another cup of coffee in the afternoon, you’ll be spiking your cortisol levels unnecessarily – which isn’t ideal for your sleep.

Since caffeine is so effective at spiking stress hormones, it's no real surprise that it can create stress in the body that impacts your mood and how you feel. Increased feelings of overwhelm and the inability to cope with stress, feeling irritable and other mood changes are all common signs that coffee may be doing more harm than good. While low to moderate doses of caffeine may increase energy, focus, alertness and mood, higher doses may have negative effects. Aside from boosting your energy, caffeine can increase your heart rate and blood pressure, cause you to urinate more frequently and can encourage dehydration as a result.

But we’re not here to demonize caffeine, so we can’t forget about the benefits! From boosting dopamine, your ‘happy’ neurotransmitter to enhancing cognitive function and memory, caffeine from natural sources like coffee can provide some notable health benefits. It all depends on what your personal tolerance is, what your stress load is like, and how you feel when you drink caffeine that will determine if and how much is right for you.

MitoQ

MitoQ is an advanced antioxidant molecule that is scientifically shown to support the body’s natural response to the oxidative stress caused by free radicals. Oxidative stress can impact every aspect of your life, from the way you move and think, to the way you work and play. MitoQ is uniquely designed to support energy levels, exercise recovery and healthy aging by supporting the body’s fight against free radicals.

Meet your mitochondria

Every inch of the human body is composed of cells (think 37 trillion!), almost all of which have their own mitochondria in charge of giving them the energy to do their jobs and keep our bodies functioning properly. Mitochondria use the oxygen we breathe and nutrients from the food we eat to create energy (or ATP) that is usable for cells to perform necessary functions. The human body is capable of producing an impressive amount of energy and this can all be traced back to the mighty mitochondria.

In the process of creating energy, mitochondria produce free radicals as a byproduct. While free radicals aren’t all bad – if too many accumulate, our cells can become damaged. But mitochondria are clever, and they self-manage free radical build-up by producing antioxidants, which stabilize those cheeky free radicals and reduce the likelihood of cell damage. But the thing is, as we age our body’s antioxidant levels naturally begin to decline – leaving free radicals ‘free’ to target cells. Additionally, our day-to-day lives expose us to even more free radicals through stressors such as pollution, UV radiation, poor diet, lack of exercise, too little sleep, smoking, life stress and drinking alcohol, making the battle against them that much harder.

How MitoQ works in the body

Antioxidants like CoQ10 directly help the mitochondria produce energy, but they also help fight free radicals and prevent cell damage. If antioxidants like CoQ10 are lacking, not only will our energy suffer but the body will have to deal with the consequences of oxidative stress. So naturally, the solution would be to increase CoQ10 levels in the body – but there is one very small but quite important problem that most CoQ10 brands conveniently overlook. When you swallow your CoQ10 supplement, barely any of it reaches the place it is needed the most – your mitochondria! Why? Because CoQ10 is poorly absorbed by the body, and the little that does make it through the digestive system does not easily pass through the mitochondrial double membrane. Mitochondria manufacture their own supply of CoQ10 for this reason, because it is almost impossible for CoQ10 to cross the membrane.

The real solution is to find a way to keep CoQ10 levels high despite the effects of aging. Due to groundbreaking cellular science, this is now possible! By adding a positive charge to the CoQ10 molecule, MitoQ is scientifically proven to get inside mitochondria and deliver a large amount of CoQ10. When you take MitoQ you literally feel the increase in energy as your mitochondria start to deliver energy to your cells and reduce the oxidative damage to your cellular machinery and DNA.

Caffeine vs Mitoq – how do they compare?

There are a few distinct differences between caffeine and MitoQ. Caffeine increases energy temporarily. The benefits are short-lived, and while there is evidence to suggest caffeine supports longevity, it’s not an effective long-term solution for low energy. Caffeine increases alertness, but since the effects don’t tend to last – there’s a rebound effect. This means you’re essentially boosting energy in the short term at the expense of the long term.

In comparison, MitoQ supports healthy energy levels by reaching the body’s energy source – the mitochondria. MitoQ is the only CoQ10 antioxidant that can effectively target our own cellular batteries, and can help neutralize harmful free radicals before they get the chance to get out and damage cells. This can result in significantly lower levels of cell stress, meaning our cells can get on with their job of producing all the energy we need to keep us healthy and active. When your mitochondria are working optimally, it has a ripple effect on your body and your life by helping you sustain long-lasting energy – without the jitters.

Learn more about the science of MitoQ