Algae: How this Superfood Hleps Protect Your Mitochondira for Greater Overall Health: 39

Hey everyone, welcome back to the Heal, Nourish, Grow podcast. Today I am really excited. I gotta quit saying that, but whenever I have a guest that I feel that way about, I can't help it. Today I'm speaking with Catherine, who is involved in the health and wellness space, and I don't want to give away too much because I already read her bio, but I'm going to let her share with you some of her background and how she got into this work, and then we'll be discussing all of the wonderful things about algae after that. Welcome, Katherine. Yes.

Well, thank you. I know you think to yourself, how does someone become an algae expert? And I tell people, I didn't choose algae, it chose me. So I'm the founder, CEO, and also the chief scientific officer of ENERGYbits. And we're really the first premium algae company in the world. And one of our, our claim to fame is not only quality, but we focus on education. And so I've written about 500 papers 'cause I needed to know why algae in general was so amazing. There are, by the way, 100,000 studies about algae documenting its ability to stop cancer and diabetes and 1,000 other things. But our algae seemed to work better than anybody else's. And I kept asking why. And so it just drove me down into the rabbit hole of science. I'm here to share some of that with you so that you can know the why. 'Cause if you know the why, it gives you a little bit more confidence in why you're putting it in your body. But so my backstory is a little unusual. I'm actually Canadian. I've lived in Boston. I live in Boston now. I've been here 33 years. I have an MBA. I was doing international business, nothing to do with nutrition, nothing to do with wellness, although I'm so happy I'm finally here. And I've been here for 12 or 13 years. So it's a permanent stop for me. But 13 years ago, My younger sister, who I'm very close to, in Canada, developed breast cancer. Now, I first want to let people know she's fine. She's been cancer-free now for 11 years. But at the time, her oncologist recommended to her that she change her diet to an alkaline diet as she was preparing for chemo. Now, they didn't tell her what an alkaline diet was or why it was good for her. So her first call was to me, her big sister who loves her. And I'm just a really good researcher. It turns out I'm a closet scientist. And I said, "I have no idea what this alkaline diet business stuff is, but I will find out." And I did. And it turned out to be primarily a plant-based diet because of the phytonutrients and the chlorophyll that have been proven to build your immune system. So I did a lot of research, read a lot of books, gave her lots of tips. She went through chemo, she changed her diet, and she did heal. And in the process, I started learning about plant-based nutrition. Now, this was 13 years ago. And nobody was talking about plant-based nutrition. I know people who are keto are listening to this and they're going, well, I don't eat a lot of vegetables 'cause there's too many carbs. But you'll find out there's zero carbs in algae, which is one of the great things about it. But anyways, I saw the health benefits of it. Nobody was talking about it. So I thought, well, I have no background, no science, no nutrition, but you know, people who know me know I'm very passionate about my choices. So I thought, I'm gonna help the world, you know, better. So I gave up my corporate career, went back to school, studied nutrition at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. Then I taught nutrition for about a year, plant-based nutrition. And this is what led me to my epiphany with algae. Because as I was teaching the importance of eating more vegetables, people said, hey, look, it's too much work. They're heavy to carry home from the grocery store. They, they take a lot of room in my fridge. They take a long time to clean, to cook, to eat. My kids won't eat them. Endless arguments at the dinner table. They spoil quickly. There are too many carbs. So I thought, okay, I get it. It's too much work. I need to find— so I need to find something that's easy, no carbs, and effortless, but gives people the nutrients of vegetables, but none of the work. Again, didn't know what I was going to find. I looked at everything I'd found for my sister. Nothing was working until I got to algae. And that's when the miracle happened. Because first of all, keto listeners, turns out algae has zero carbs, only one calorie per tablet. They come in little tiny tablets. And this is was part of the key to— because you can swallow these, or you can, you know, some people chew them, but most people swallow them or mix them up with smoothies. And they are effortless. Each one of these tablets, as you're going to find out, has the same nutrition as an entire plate of vegetables with no carbs. 1 calorie, 60% protein, 40 vitamins and minerals. This is fast food. This is keto fast food. It's It's ketogenic, it's vegan, it's low carb, low fiber. But on top of having, you know, effortless nutrition, it's all— algae's a multi-billion dollar industry in Asia. It's a crop, it's a vegetable crop. So it's not a supplement. I'm gonna show you a picture of algae farms. This is a spirulina farm. This is a chlorella farm. We call them bits 'cause they're bits of food. So it's been a— it's as big as the beef industry is in America. That's how big algae is. So it's been used safely for 70 years in Asia. It's the most studied food in the world. There's about 60,000 studies in the NIH library about spirulina, which is one of the algae we're gonna talk about, and about 40,000 on chlorella, which is the other algae we're gonna talk about. So documented, safely used, endorsed by international agencies. The United Nations has endorsed spirulina since 1974 as the answer to world hunger because it has the highest highest concentration of protein in the world. And NASA has endorsed it for 50 years because it has 1,000 times more— they say that it has 1,000 times more nutrition than any other fruit or vegetable. And the only problem with algae— well, there are two things. Nobody outside of Asia really seemed to know about it. And the quality had been poor because a lot of it was grown in China. So I decided when I saw the science and I saw the international endorsements that it was ketogenic and the highest concentration of chlorophyll, highest concentration of protein, highest concentration of superoxide dismutase, an important nutrient. Comes in tablets that you can put in your handbag. Like, we have little single servings pouches you can travel with. These, uh, no mixing. They're safe for newborns, pets, teens, grandparents. This is it. This is a game changer for your health, for your nutrition, for your mitochondria. I'm going to talk about a lot about mitochondria 'cause it turns out algae has everything that your mitochondria need to be healthy. And as you're probably hearing more about mitochondria, you'll, you're gonna find out what the scientists have found out, which is mitochondria determine everything about your health. Everything. Chronic diseases, bad skin, bad digestion, Alzheimer's, doesn't matter what illness, it all starts with damaged mitochondria. And these, ladies and gentlemen, are how you protect your mitochondria better than anything. And it's natural, unprocessed, no heat, one ingredient. It's food. So it's pretty sweet. I get pretty excited about it because when I feel it, when you feel that you've got your answer to what the world needs, it's pretty crazy.

Yeah, no, you can definitely feel your passion coming through. And there are certainly a lot of people starting to talk talk a lot more about mitochondria lately. Dr. Stephen Gundry, I think, has out a new book that's all about the importance of mitochondria. So before we move on a little further here, I just want to make sure that I get Catherine back. We had a little technical difficulty, but I think we're back on track now. So anyway, you last were talking about mitochondria, and I had so many questions of all the things that you were saying at the beginning, but we'll start with mitochondria because I think it's kind of where they came from. It's actually a bacteria, or we engulf the bacteria or something crazy like this, and it became this wonderful symbiotic relationship. But can you share why that is relevant to our discussion of the algae and a little bit more around your understanding of what the mitochondria do?

Well, it's a pretty com— deep conversation. So I'm just gonna give you an overview and then we'll talk about the algae and then we'll get into a deeper dive in the mitochondria 'cause it's really important that you understand. So mitochondria, they're called organelles. They're little teeny tiny organelles that are inside your cells. And these little organelles are what generate energy. Now, it's energy for thinking, it's energy for running, it's energy for driving your car, but most importantly, it's what's called cellular energy. So it takes all the food that you eat, the glucose, the fat, the carbs, and it converts this into something called ATP, which is a cellular energy that fuels everything in your body. And it uses— generates over 90% of your energy. And doctors have recently realized that— well, we've been talking for the last little while, last 10 years, about how all illnesses are a result of inflammation. Well, now they're realizing that 90%, over 90% of that inflammation is in the mitochondria. So keeping your mitochondria healthy and your mitochondria DNA is number one for longevity, for health, for avoiding Alzheimer's, heart disease, diabetes, absolutely everything. You know, they're realizing even diabetes is caused by dysfunctional mitochondria and dysfunctional mitochondria cause diabetes because of the— it interferes with the insulin release in your pancreas. So it doesn't matter whether you're carnivore or ketogenic or vegan or, you know, 5 years old or 50 years old, your mitochondria determine everything that has to do with your health. And what you're gonna find out today is that you don't need really jazzy, expensive devices to improve your mitochondria health because algae gives your mitochondria everything that it needs, and it has the highest concentration of everything that it needs to be healthy. And I'm gonna explain that in a few more minutes in greater detail. So, 'cause I really do want people to understand the science, but both the two algae we're gonna talk about today, spirulina and chlorella, do it in different ways. So would this be a good time to sort of segue into explaining the two different algae and why they, what they do differently?

Absolutely. Let's talk about it.

Okay. So as I mentioned, algae is a food crop. Now algae is everywhere. It's the first life on Earth almost 4 billion years ago, and it's in the rivers, the lakes, the streams, the soil, your swimming pool, your aquarium. And those are all— there's tens of thousands of strains. We're only talking about two today. And the two we're talking about are harvested as food crops, spirulina and Chlorella. Spirulina is a blue-green algae and chlorella is a green algae. Now we call our spirulina Energybits and it's packaged in a blue bag because it's a blue-green algae. And the chlorella we're going to talk about is a green algae, which we package in green to help you understand that it's a green algae. But the— so when you read, if you go online and you read about a toxic blue-green algae bloom closing some sort of beach, we're not talking about spirulina. That's another strain. And by the way, poor algae gets the bum rap because algae only shows up when there are toxins and algae kills bacteria. So it is, it is the cleanup crew, both in your beaches and also in your body. So poor algae gets a bum rap. It's only there to protect you. So as I mentioned, it's grown in freshwater, freshwater, not the ocean. Then we, then we air dry it without heat, which is very important as you're gonna find out in a minute. And then we press them into little tablets that I showed you that you can, you can swallow or chew. Now there's so much nutrition in each tablet, zero carbs, but so much nutrition. It equals the same amount of nutrition as an entire plate of vegetables that you didn't have to clean, cook, eat, buy, argue with your kids to eat, and zero carbs. So it's ketogenic, We work with a lot of keto practitioners, Keto Mojo, Dr. Dominique D'Agostino, who's a big keto scientist. Now, the cool thing about both algae, but especially spirulina, is it has the highest protein in the world and the protein is in amino acid form. Animal protein's all bound up, so it could take up to days to get broken into amino acids for your body to absorb it. Collagen peptides are clusters of aminos, but algae are individual aminos. And that's one of the reasons why spirulina, which has the highest protein in the world, gives you so much energy. Here's, this is what they look like. Again, the tablets, blue-green algae, green algae. You can see the color. 'Cause blue-green algae is called blue-green because it has two pigments in it, a blue one called phycocyanin and the green one, which is chlorophyll. So we call our spirulina Energybits because Spirulina is known for giving you energy, physical, mental, and metabolic. That's at the cellular level energy. And it does that because of the highest protein in the world, has 18 of the 20 amino acids, including the 9 that your body can't make. So it is a complete protein. It also is loaded with B vitamins that convert the pro— the aminos into energy. It also is a vasodilator, which opens up your blood vessels. So your blood can flow and bring more nutrients and oxygen to your cells. It has boron, which helps with your synapses, so it helps with thinking. It's loaded with essential fatty acids, including omega-3. So, and that's where most of the story that most people know about spirulina is that it has high protein and it gives you energy and is very nourishing. By the way, it can replace your mito, your fish oil, your multivitamin, your CoQ10, biotin. It's loaded with all your essential, all your minerals, including the magnesium, potassium. So that's where most people, that's where their knowledge of spirulina starts and ends. But as the chief scientific officer, I needed to know why exactly it was giving people so much energy at the cellular level and reducing inflammation better than anything. And it turns out spirulina has the highest antioxidant called— it's a mouthful— superoxide dismutase, also known as SOD. Now, this is an antioxidant that the science community is getting really excited about because it is being shown to reduce free radicals in the mitochondria. And there is virtually no food source of superoxide dismutase. There's a teeny tiny little bit, almost imperceptible, in cabbage. Or, but they get, it gets damaged in your digestive system. So spirulina has the highest concentration of superoxide dismutase in the world. And 30 of our tablets has 28,000 units of superoxide dismutase. And they did a study and they found that when you gave people 100 units of it who were tired and fatigued and anxious and depressed, within weeks, all of that was gone with 100 units.. So each one of our tablets has about 1,000 units. So just imagine now you can see what's going on. You give your mitochondria all the things that needs to be protected from free radical damage. It's going to work better. It's like, you know, if you give someone who's been on a desert water, finally they're gonna feel better. So by giving your mitochondria what it needs to protect itself and not be damaged by free radicals, it's just gonna perform better. There'll be less inflammation. So that's pretty sweet. That's number one, superoxide dismutase. Virtually no other food source in the world. And the one of the reasons why spirulina is the best solution for you, at least ours is, because we don't use high heat. 'Cause you're gonna find out superoxide dismutase is an enzyme and high heat kills enzymes. But more importantly, spirulina is a bacteria. It has no cell wall. So all of the protein, all the amino acids, all the superoxide dismutase literally bypass digestion. It is absorbed so quickly. So it is diverted directly to your mitochondria because it doesn't really spend any time in digestion. This is why athletes love it so much because they get the energy from the spirulina so quickly that they can, you know, it doesn't upset their stomach. So It's pretty amazing stuff. So that's spirulina, very high in protein, superoxide dismutase. And my recent research has shown me that spirulina also has the highest concentration of melatonin. Now, most people know about melatonin as something that helps them sleep, that controls their circadian rhythm. But 10 years ago, the science community realized that melatonin is a powerful antioxidant. They used to think it was only created in the pineal gland, but now they realize it is created and used at— by the mitochondria. And so the fact that spirulina has the highest melatonin in the world also gives you— your mitochondria great protection from free radical damage. And they're also realizing melatonin, like other things, gets damaged in your gut during digestion. But once again, because spirulina is a bacteria and it gets absorbed instantly, it carries all that rich melatonin into your mitochondria. Now, we work with a lot of sports and sports nutritionists, you know, NHL players, NFL players, and sports nutritionists have traditionally given their athletes tart cherry juice after a game or a workout to reduce inflammation. And part of it's because it's been known to have melatonin Well, spirulina has 28,000 times more melatonin than tart cherry juice. And I had lab tests done about a month ago to find out how much melatonin was in our spirulina. In fact, that, that's the number I got. And I told the lab they had to do the test again because the number was so high, but came back. There you go. So spirulina, again, very good at protecting your mitochondria where the metabolic energy is created. And that's what gives you energy both mentally, physically, and protects you from disease. So, so that's pretty exciting. The other algae we're gonna talk about, I want you to know about, is chlorella. And that's the one that's a green algae. And we call it RecoveryBits because it's a wellness algae. Spirulina is an energizing algae, nourishing algae, nourishing your body, your brain, your mitochondria. And chlorella is a detoxing wellness algae. That's why we call it RecoveryBits. And what's so special about it is it has the highest chlorophyll in the world. Spirulina has the highest protein, superoxide dismutase, and melatonin in the world. Chlorella has the highest chlorophyll. It also has the second highest melatonin and the second highest protein, second to spirulina. What's so important about chlorophyll? Well, I'm gonna show you this picture. This is your chemical composition of your hemoglobin. And your chemical composition of your chlorophyll. Notice that they're virtually identical. That's because they are. The only difference is your blood has iron in the middle and your chlorophyll has magnesium. Chlorophyll builds your blood. It's as simple as that. They've used it for centuries for ill, when anyone was ill. You know, if your dog gets sick, they automatically go and eat grass. It's 'cause they intuitively know to eat chlorophyll. Even as recently as World War II, they, if they ran outta blood for transfusions, they would give the injured liquid chlorophyll 'cause they would heal just as fast. So that's number one, it builds your blood. Number two, chlorophyll is a fat-based pigment. Why is that important? Because it builds your cell walls. Your cell walls need to be permeable in order for nutrients to get in and toxins to get out. And so that's traditionally people have used vitamin D, omega-3, vitamin E, But chlorophyll is also a fat-based, so it also heals your cell walls. I tell people, you know, if your windows are dirty, you can't see out and sunlight can't get in. And so think of chlorophyll as window washers for your cell wall. So it's very efficient that way. Now, the other important thing about chlorella, 'cause I know it's a mouthful, is that it has the hardest cell wall in the plant kingdom. Remember I said spirulina has zero cellulose wall, no fiber at all. And it gets absorbed instantly. This one, Chlorella, has the hardest cell wall. What's so important about that cell wall is that it attaches to toxins— lead, mercury, radiation, aluminum, doesn't matter what it is, alcohol, lactic acid— and it chelates them and pulls them all the way out of your body. Spirulina is nourishing and cleansing because it has chlorophyll, but it is not a detoxing algae. So a lot of our health issues are because of toxins in our bodies. And so chlorella is, has been used for centuries, or not centuries, but decades. They used it at Chernobyl to pull out radiation after the disaster, after Fukushima disaster. All the Asians bought up chlorella. We work with biological dentists who use it to pull out mercury from fillings. It pulls out aluminum, which is of course in vaccines. People use it if they're taking chemotherapy 'cause it pulls out excess chemo so you're not as sick. So it's really powerful as a detoxing agent. Now, when you sleep, your body goes through a detox and repair cycle. Chlorella, by the way, also has the highest RNA and DNA in the world, daily requirement of vitamin K2 that moves excess calcium outta your soft tissue and into your bones. So it also prevents osteoporosis. It has all sorts of other nutrients that are very, very healing. And so, because when you sleep, your body goes through a detox and repair cycle, Oh, and it does have melatonin as well. Second highest, only second to spirulina. So to have a better detox and repair, and it also stimulates peristalsis, which is known as a bowel movement, we recommend you can take chlorella during the day if you want, but definitely before you go to bed. And spirulina, you know, you're hungry in the morning if you're doing intermittent fasting or you want, you know, 20 would be like a mini meal for 20 calories, zero carbs. You could take this anytime a day before a workout. Same with this one. This won't give you energy or satisfy your hunger, but definitely take it before bed because of the melatonin, high tryptophan. You will definitely have a better sleep and you will have a better repair. So the two of them work completely differently in your body. This is nourishing and building, and this is detoxing and cleansing. We recommend, you know, try to take at least 10 a day. More is better. We have NHL players who put 75 of these in their smoothie before a game and 75 of these in their smoothie after a game. So there is no upper limit because it's a plant. I mean, it's a crop. You remember, this is technically a bacteria. It's called a cyanobacteria. But they are so nourishing that it's unbelievable. And it will replace— right now we're seeing a lot of inflation and vegetables, it's all going up in terms of cost. One bag of these, a large bag, has the equivalent nutrition as 551 pounds of vegetables. So it's efficient nutrition and it never goes bad. We have to put an expiry date on it. It's usually 2 or 3 years, but you could keep this for years and it will never go bad. So, you know, vegetables, you throw it out after 2 or 3 days, your arugula goes yellow. This has 500 times more chlorophyll than arugula. So it's very efficient, saves you time, saves you money, and it will certainly save your mitochondria. So the two of them work in partnership that way.

Katherine, you did answer one of my questions really well, is that there's no upper limit, because you're— some of the numbers that you're throwing out, it's so much more than kind of what people would normally think of, that they might worry about some kind of toxicity. But it does lead me to another question that you've probably heard some people people talking about lately about, you know, plants don't want to be eaten. Some of them have defense chemicals that can be a negative impact on health.

Yes.

So when you're having something like this that's very, very concentrated, can you speak a little bit to how the makeup of algae might be, you know, different than plants for some ways? I mean, does it have those defense chemicals?

Is that something? No. And thank you for raising that because if anyone, you know, ketogenic people, carnivores, also people have autoimmune, a lot of it is caused by lectins and oxalates. These are proteins that are found in plants. Some of them are very high concentration like kale and spinach. Dr. Steven Gundry, I've been on his podcast a couple times. He's written a couple of really terrific books. I urge people to read them. One is called The Plant Paradox, and he acknowledges that plants can be helpful, but they can also have what's called anti-nutrients, which can be very damaging if you're sensitive to them because these tiny proteins They're very sharp and they can puncture your stomach lining, which causes food to get into your bloodstream. And then your body triggers— it triggers your immune system and your body starts, you know, fighting itself. That leads to autoimmune. And the reason why they're in plants is because, you know, plants are land-based organisms. And over, you know, centuries and eons, They've developed these lectins and oxalates, which taste terrible to bugs and predators to keep them away because when they eat the plant, it's gonna make them feel sick. So they don't kill it. And it's particularly in nuts and seeds of the plant. So be very careful of almonds, ladies and gentlemen. I used to be an almond fan and I don't eat almonds anymore because they have the highest lectins and oxalates in the world. It's crazy. But here's the good news. Algae is not a land plant. It started in the ocean. And so it has never had to develop lectins or oxalates as defense mechanisms. And I've even done lab tests to find out if there are lectins and oxalates and there aren't any. Well, it's like so minuscule. It's virtually zero. So those of you who have concerns about what these— about anti-nutrients and you have a— and you absolutely should be concerned about them because there aren't any in the algae. And so that's why Dr. Gundry and other people are very bullish on algae, in particular ours, because we sell only on our website or through doctors and functional medicine and biohacking centers because it offers all the benefits. That's why I love it so much. It gives all the keto people the chlorophyll you need and none of the carbs or the Carnivores, it gives you all the things you need to protect your blood and your health, but none of the antioxidants, none of the lectins or oxalates. And yet if you're vegan, it gives you all the protein that you need, including our B vitamins like B12 that you might not be getting because you're not eating protein. So animal protein. So it doesn't pick sides. It just supports and uplevels whatever lifestyle choice and dietary routine that you are pursuing. And in fact, spirulina, that's why it's used in Japan for newborns if they can't digest mother's breast milk, 'cause it has the same, virtually the same amino acid profile in the same proportions. And they just put it in water and has second only to mother's breast milk, a nutrient called GLA, which is an amino essential fatty acid, which develops your brain. So, So it's, it's, it's pretty amazing.

That is very amazing. The only other thing I can think of people seeing as a possible negative, and I'm sure this depends on where it's sourced or where it's grown, is any worry about contamination from microplastics in the algae.

Yeah. Well, microplastics are definitely a concern in the ocean, but remember, this is not grown in the ocean. We grow ours in triple-filtered spring mountain water. It doesn't get any cleaner than that. In Taiwan. Taiwan is world-renowned as having the highest quality algae and highest certification. We have GMP certification and we do lab tests. We get lab tests done on our, for the nutritional value and also toxins in Taiwan. And we do a second set here in America at an FDA-approved lab because we sell through doctors and they need to know for sure what's in the algae. And so there is there's nothing else in our algae. And all of our enzymes, which we're gonna get to in a minute, because I wanna talk about mitochondria, are alive because we don't use high heat. So it's a raw— ours, nobody else's, but ours is a raw food, keto, raw, vegan, no anti-nutrients. That's why it fits with any lifestyle or any dietary choice. So it's pretty powerful stuff.

Yeah. And that's one of the reasons I was excited to talk to you because I'm always looking for what is the cleanest—

Yes.

—version of things that we can put in our body. And I know that that's one of the things that you guys do is a lot of testing and a lot of effort goes into making sure that this is a very pure product. So, before we wrap things up, I know you want to go into the tie now between the algae and the mitochondria, and I want to be respectful of your time. So, maybe we can do that and then close out with where people can find you and where you're providing the latest education. Okay, excellent.

Well, just to let people know, remember I said there are these little organelles? I'm gonna show you a picture. Now, they kinda look like a little peanut-shaped thing, and they're inside your cells. And I wanna show you, give you a sense of how important these things are. The highest number of these mitochondria per cell are where the highest energy needs are. So number 1 is your brain. Number 2 is actually women's eggs because it takes a lot of energy to make a human. And number 3 is your heart and your muscles. So think about this. There are 2 million of these mitochondria per cell in your brain. Think about it. 2 million per cell. They're realizing Alzheimer's is a mitochondria disease. There are 5,000 of these per cell in your heart or in your muscles. They're realizing heart disease is a mitochondria disease. So what, why do mitochondria get so damaged? So here's your cell, here's your nucleus in the middle, and then you have these mitochondria all over the place, right? Up to 2 million of them in your per cell in your brain. Now, inside the mitochondria is where your ATP is produced. Remember, that's the thing, the energy that provides your body with the energy it needs to do anything. Cellular communication, your plasma flowing, your heart beating, your brain thinking. Everything comes from the ATP production. But when ATP is produced, In the process, so are free radicals. Now, we know that free radicals are damaging. And so the problem is the mitochondria have their own DNA. There's only 37 of them of the 25,000. Now, your regular DNA is way over here, nowhere near where the ATP is produced. Your mitochondria DNA are right inside where the ATP is produced, where the free radicals are produced and they're like sitting— if you've ever sat near a bonfire, if you get too close, sparks fly, right? And you could get burned. That's exactly what's happening to your mitochondria DNA. They are exactly where the free radicals are, are being released and they get fried. Your regular DNA lasts a lifetime. They're nowhere near where the ATP and the free radicals are being produced. Your mitochondria DNA, their average lifespan is 10 to 20 days because they are getting so damaged, constantly being bombarded over and over and over again with free radicals. But here's the problem. There's only 37 mitochondria DNA, but scientists have realized the mitochondria DNA control everything. They control your regular DNA. They control the communication of your cellular membrane. They control whether you have apoptosis, which is cell death, or necrosis, which is, you know, when the cells are sick and they spill out into each— into the rest of your cell membrane. And this is what causes inflammation, and this is what causes disease. So the fact that your mitochondria DNA are constantly being damaged and miscommunicating or dying is the core, is the key to being sick. And so anything you can do to protect the mitochondria DNA will protect your health, will protect your longevity, will protect your brain, and you will just have more energy because there's gonna be more of them being able to generate ATP and they will last longer. But here's the problem. I don't know if you can quite see this. I have another picture. All of your cells in your body have one cellular membrane, but your mitochondria have two. I'll explain why there's a second one. They have the one on the outside, but there's an inner, inner membrane. And the problem is that inner membrane is impenetrable by virtually all antioxidants. So, so that's why You can have all the vitamin A and vitamin E and vitamin C and none of it will get into the mitochondria to stop the free radical damage. And the free radical damage is like exhaust coming out of a car, especially if you're eating carbs. They exhaust your mitochondria. They exhaust your mitochondria DNA. So the best way to save your mitochondria, listen to this, for keto, our keto fans, is reduce your free radicals. Reduce them. And the best way to do that is with a keto diet because fats generate fewer free radicals. So that's good news. The other— but even better, if you want to uplevel, you take algae because there's virtually no free radicals when you digest algae, or fasting, virtually zero free radicals. So that's the number one way, and anybody can do that, is to reduce your free radicals So there's fewer of them damaging your mitochondria. The other option is to stop the free radicals and neutralize them. But here's a better picture. So here's the outer membrane. And there's that inner membrane that nothing can get in, except good news, drumroll, the 3 antioxidants that are the highest concentration in algae: superoxide dismutase, melatonin, and chlorophyll. Those 3, and also glutathione, those 3 can get into that inner membrane and stop the free radical damage. So, and the way it works is, and in fact our bodies create superoxide dismutase, but as you get older, you have virtually none. Same thing with melatonin. As you get older, that's, you have virtually none. That's why older people have such a hard time sleeping. They're not generating melatonin. Right. Spirulina has the highest concentration of melatonin in the world and only makes you sleepy when it's dark. You get all the antioxidant benefits and it only makes you sleepy when it's dark. But back to superoxide dismutase. What it does is it neutralizes the free radicals. It basically turns them into water. But there is virtually no food source of superoxide dismutase in your body. Doesn't make them after you are older. So, but here's the trouble. Superoxide dismutase is an enzyme, and enzymes are damaged and, and killed by high heat. And virtually every other spirulina company out there uses high heat to dry their algae. Why? Because they are a low-priced, high-volume supplier, so they have to get to market quickly. I started the company because my sister got cancer. I wasn't even planning on building a company. I just wanted to help my sister get better. And then I learned that I could help other people, and then I just kept going. But every single decision I've made was based on what can we give people, what quality can we preserve. So when I heard about high heat being used to dry algae, I said, well, that's not gonna work for us. I didn't even know about superoxide dismutase, but I knew enzymes. Were important. So the only other way you can get superoxide dismutase from spirulina is if you can buy frozen spirulina. And there are a few companies that do that. They're hard to find, doesn't travel well, and expires really early. But that's why our spirulina works so well, because the superoxide dismutase is preserved. It can get into that inner membrane and, and protect you. And, and so it, and Same with the melatonin. It's the highest concentration in the world in, in certainly in our spirulina. So it gives that mitochondria all the protection it needs. And, and so now I'm gonna tell you why there's two membranes and this is what's really crazy. So as you mentioned at the very beginning, 4 billion years ago, there was no life on Earth. And then this tiny little cell started growing. It's called a cyanobacteria, like spirulina. And after a billion years, there was a lot of oxygen, it released oxygen. There was enough oxygen so bigger cells could survive. But the little guy wasn't doing so well with all the oxygen. And the big cell didn't do so well making ATP. So the big cell engulfed the little cell, but instead of digesting it, sort of like when you have a friend who gets kicked out of their apartment and they say, hey, can I come and stay with you? And you say, okay, fine, you know, what the heck. But then they do your dishes, they make your bed, they do your grocery shopping, they pick up your dry cleaning, and you go, hey, stay, stay forever. So that's exactly what happened. The little guy, cyanobacteria, also known as spirulina, was generating ATP so well that it— the big cell said, well, just stay and we'll protect you from all the oxygen. And that little mitochondria That little cell, cyanobacteria, like spirulina, became your mitochondria. That's why there's two membranes in your mitochondria, because there's the original membrane from when it was all by itself, and then there was the second membrane that was put around it when it got engulfed. Now, these outside cells' membranes have something called porins, P-O-R-I-N-S. They're little tiny channels that allow proteins in and out or antioxidants in and out. But there aren't any on the inner membrane because when it was by itself, it didn't, didn't need that. So that's why spirulina and mitochondria are virtually identical. And that's why when you give your body spirulina or even chlorella to a lesser degree, it has everything that your mitochondria need because they are virtually the same. Is that not the craziest thing? And it's all documented in science. It's like you couldn't make this stuff up. I thought I'd won the Nobel Prize when I discovered it because it's in plant biology. But who in plant biology is doing anything with metabolic health or keto diets? I'm just the freak of nature that discovered this.

So I think sometimes it's good for somebody outside outside of the science and the space to bring things together because I think people just get very siloed in their research and in their knowledge.

So, so now I know why it works so well and why ours works so well because it's so natural and nothing added to it to mess up all those great nutrients that protect your mitochondria. And there, as I said, there are tens of thousands of studies documenting all this. I connected the dots in a way that nobody else did. So I can promise you that this stuff works. And I'm so honored to share this information. I now am speaking all over the country sharing this because it's pretty exciting stuff. You don't have to go and spend tens of thousands of dollars or on, on anything to improve your health, your longevity, your keto diet, lose weight, protect yourself from Alzheimer's or heart disease. None of that. Just take algae every day. I do. I have for 12 years and, you know, I'm almost 66. And so I am living proof that this stuff works. I have no wrinkles and my brain seems to be working still. So I just want people to be able to enjoy the benefits of it and learn that it doesn't have to be a lot of work to be healthy and well. And the other thing I tell people is algae isn't new. It's just new to you. So I welcome people to come and visit us at energybits.com. We do sell them in large bags. This is the best value. It's $125 for a bag, but we have a 20% discount code, HNG. HNG works on everything, whether it's the canisters. We sell really cool canisters that come with a bag so you can just shake your tablets out into your hand with this little, you know, this way. And we have, we sell them in single servings too, like this. So you can toss 'em in your gym bag or handbag or just come to the website, energybits.com and read. We write a really great blog with lots of science references. Everything we do is science referenced. But I promise you it will make a difference in your life, your family's life, simplify things, give you everything you need to live optimally. And what doesn't matter what age you are or whether your pets will love them them too. So give yourself the gift of love, algae love.

Yeah, I'm really excited for the audience to try this and that you guys so generously offered that discount for them. So again, it's 20% off, it's HNG for Heal, Nourish, Grow. And Katherine, I just want to thank you so much for taking time out of your very busy schedule. Actually, Katherine and I were together at KetoCon and she just got back, I think, to her house maybe yesterday, and then she's taking off again tomorrow to do more education around country. So check out the website if you want to know where she's going to be. And please let both of us know if you decide to try this. I'd love to hear what impact that it has on your health. So again, Katherine, thank you so much for joining us. Thank you. Appreciate you taking the time.

Thank you so much. All right, take care.

Okay, you too.