Feeling energized throughout the day is essential for productivity, focus, and overall well-being. But for many people, maintaining consistent vitality can be a challenge. Busy schedules, stress, and poor nutrition can all take a toll, leaving you feeling drained and sluggish. Instead of relying on quick fixes, more people are turning to natural energy solutions for long-lasting vitality. In this article, we'll explore effective ways to boost your energy levels naturally and feel your best everyday. 

How Does My Body Get Energy From Food?

Picture your body as a machine. In order to get your body to work, your body needs fuel or food. It then transports that fuel to each cell. Inside each cell are little engines called mitochondria. They take in the fuel and process it to release energy.

This processed energy is your body’s main source of energy as it is used to power all of the body’s cell processes. The glandular system is another important energetic body system that regulates which energy comes into the body and where it goes. It’s sort of like the fuel injector of your body. Blood cells carry oxygen all around the body, which is needed for cells to perform their duties, making this system another critical part of your body’s energy regulation.

What Causes Low Energy?

Lack of energy can be attributed to many causes. All of these causes must negatively impact your body’s ability to get fuel into the body, inhibit the mitochondria’s ability to turn it into energy or alter the functioning of the hormonal and blood system. Some of these factors are:

  • Poor Nutrition
  • Toxin accumulation from medications, environmental sources or food and water.
  • Lack of sleep
  • Stress and emotional issues
  • Lack of exercise

Poor Nutrition

Energy affects the body in clear and measurable ways. Without enough raw materials, the body becomes fatigued. 

The standard North American diet lacks vitamins, minerals, and essential fatty acids. It also contains high levels of saturated fat, refined carbohydrates, and additives. These foods do not provide usable energy for the body. They also reduce energy efficiency by depleting enzymes and hormones needed for metabolism. 

The body must process toxic byproducts from bleached flour, sugar, artificial flavours, and trans fats. As a result, energy shifts toward detoxification instead of growth, repair, and metabolism. 

Food type also determines whether energy comes in quick bursts or in a steady release. Simple sugars and refined carbohydrates absorb quickly into the bloodstream. 

This creates a rapid energy spike followed by a crash. These blood sugar swings place stress on the body and deplete hormones quickly. Afterward, the body struggles to restore balance with limited available energy. This pattern resembles repeated sprints instead of steady movement. 

The brain relies primarily on glucose for fuel. Most people have experienced brain fog from low blood sugar levels. This shows that unstable food sugar impairs optimal brain function. 

Red blood cell production depends on protein, B vitamins, and minerals like iron. Hemoglobin allows red blood cells to transport oxygen efficiently. 

Without adequate oxygen, cells cannot produce energy effectively. This leads to reduced cellular energy production and increased fatigue. 

Toxin Accumulation 

Besides toxic by-products in our food, the body must also deal with the toxins taken in from our environment and toxins within medications. The body has effective ways of dealing with toxins and waste products using the liver, intestines, kidneys, lungs and skin. Environmental toxins can cause these pathways to become blocked. The backup of waste material makes it harder for the rest of the body to function normally and ultimately leads to a lack of energy. Since the environment in which we live makes it impossible for us to maintain a pristine lifestyle, all of us can suffer from a lack of energy due to the build-up of environmental toxins.

The only way for medication to have a therapeutic effect is if it has a significant half-life in the body. Half-life means the length of time it takes for the body to eliminate half of the drug. Overwhelming the body’s detoxifying ability with medications has a negative effect on the organs of detoxification. It prevents the system from dealing with the accumulation of normal metabolic by-products, wears out the organs and depletes nutrients that are needed for the detoxification process.

Lack of Sleep

Sleep is an essential component of our body’s repair mechanisms. During sleep, the body is in an anabolic, or building, state. It has time to regenerate cells and replenish hormones, enzymes and neurotransmitters.

Insomnia prevents the repair of normal damage from the body’s daily activity. Over time, this leads to a decrease in cellular functioning and ultimately causes fatigue. The brain also requires sleep in order to process information that is learned throughout the day.

Stress

Whether physical, mental or emotional, strain the body and ultimately leads to fatigue. Stress puts the body into sympathetic nervous system mode. In this mode, the body is on high alert, energy is being focused on the senses, heart and muscles. The digestive system receives less blood flow and cannot function to capacity. Therefore, the body is less able to take in fuel, and it is using it up at an increased rate.

Mental and emotional stress also depletes neurochemicals that regulate our sense of well-being. If these neurochemicals are not replaced, then disorders, such as depression, can develop.

Lack of Exercise

Lack of exercise can lead to fatigue by compromising the circulation of all molecules around the body, including food particles, oxygen and hormones. Circulation is also responsible for flushing waste products out of the cells and taking them to the appropriate organs for processing and excretion. The venous system contains no valves, so blood flow back to the heart is dependent on the movement of the surrounding musculature.

Medical Conditions That Impact Energy

Any medical condition can alter the body’s functioning and cause feelings of fatigue. Here are a few conditions that directly impact energy levels:

Adrenal Fatigue

Adrenal glands are small glands located on the upper pole of each kidney. There are two main areas of the adrenals. The cortex produces sex hormones, stress hormones and other hormones responsible for water and sugar balance. The medulla produces the stress hormones adrenaline and norepinephrine. Adrenal depletion can be caused by a high-stress lifestyle, poor diet and abuse of drugs or alcohol. When the adrenal gland is unable to produce adrenaline in response to sympathetic stimulation, fatigue is one of the symptoms. With proper adrenal support, the gland can rebound quickly, and total adrenal failure is uncommon.

Anemia

This results in the decreased ability of red blood cells to carry oxygen. One of the first symptoms is fatigue and exhaustion after small amounts of activity. There are several types of anemia. Iron deficiency anemia is the most common. Megaloblastic anemia is due to a dietary deficiency of B12 and possibly folic acid. Pernicious anemia is also due to a deficiency of B12. This time it occurs because of a lack of the ability to absorb B12 in the stomach. Hemolytic anemia occurs when red blood cells are prematurely destroyed. It is an inherited blood disorder. Poisoning from toxic substances may also cause anemia. Anemia during pregnancy is common but is usually caused by increased blood volume as opposed to a lack of oxygen carrying ability.

Diabetes

Will occur when a person’s pancreas is unable to produce enough insulin to metabolize the amount of sugar that they are ingesting. Sugar can be transported to the cells but will not be taken into the cell without insulin. The cells are starving for fuel even though it is right outside the membrane. Progressive fatigue is one symptom of diabetes.

Hypothyroidism 

The thyroid gland sets the metabolic rate for the body. When the thyroid gland is low functioning, the body is in a hypothyroid state. Hypothyroidism causes many symptoms, including fatigue, an increased need for sleep, poor memory, weight gain, frequent infections, hair loss, dry skin, cold skin, poor nail growth, bowel changes and muscle and joint aches.

Hormonal Health

Sex hormone imbalances, such as menopause or andropause, can cause decreased energy because the ovaries and testicles are part of the hormonal gland axis, along with the adrenals and thyroid. As we age, and the functioning of the sex glands decreases, the adrenals and thyroid have to re-establish the body’s hormonal balance. The additional strain can lead to problems with the other glands, resulting in fatigue.

What Are Natural Ways To Boost My Energy?

Fortunately, there are many natural therapies that improve your body’s use of energy.

Dietary Support

Dietary support for increasing energy is as follows:

  • Decrease your consumption of alcohol, caffeine, tobacco, corticosteroids, fried foods, pork products, red meat, processed foods, sugar and white flour.
  • Eat more foods containing high amounts of vitamins and minerals, like green leafy vegetables, seaweeds, whole grains, nuts and seeds and legumes. Foods containing iron and B vitamins are green leafy vegetables, dried apricots, prunes, raisins, oats, blackstrap molasses, kidney beans, pinto beans, nutritional yeast, spirulina, meats and dairy products. Consume essential fatty acids in flax, pumpkin, hemp and sunflower seed oils or in fish.
  • Drink 2L of filtered water daily. Avoid chlorinated and fluoridated water because they block iodine receptors in the thyroid.

Detoxification

Detoxification involves dietary, supplemental and physical interventions. It usually focuses on one or more of the main organs of detoxification, the liver, kidneys, bowels, lungs or skin. To help detoxify the body, avoid packaged or fast foods, coffee, black tea, chocolate, alcohol, white sugar, salt, condiments, tobacco, dairy products, fried food, preservatives, or artificial sweeteners. Consume 2L of filtered water daily, herbal teas and 100% pure fruit juices. Eat fresh or steamed fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean meats, fish, soy products, nuts, seeds, cold-pressed vegetable oils and spices. Drink a glass of warm water with the juice of half a lemon each morning to regulate bowel and liver function. Use supplementation to focus the detoxification on one or more organs.

Sleep Hygiene

Sleep hygiene is an essential component of healthy sleep. Go to bed only when you are tired and do not stay in bed if you're not sleepy. Use the bedroom only for sleep and sex. Get up at the same time each day. Do not nap unless it is a daily routine, and exercise during the day but not before bed. Take a hot bath or shower 1-2 hours before bed. Keep the bedroom quiet and comfortable. If necessary, use a white noise machine to generate background noise. Put worries out of your mind, and think of positive things.

Emotional Health

Support your emotional health by constructively releasing frustrations and anger. Take classes in yoga, biofeedback or anger management. Allow yourself to grieve after the loss of important people or things in your life. Seek out self-help groups and ask for help from family and friends during stressful times.

Regular moderate exercise is a great natural way to boost your energy. It raises energy levels by increasing circulation and releasing stress. Find an activity that you enjoy and that you can comfortably undertake given your age and health status.