DIGGING DEEPER INTO MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION
"...Certainly, chronic fatigue should be considered mitochondrial in nature. I don’t think there is a more clear-cut example of mitochondrial dysfunction than severe fatigue, muscle pain and weakness. The question becomes, from where does the dysfunction originate and how can it be fixed or healed?
Migraine, seizures, ataxias and other neurological disorders are emerging as mitochondrial, particularly was more work is done on the hypocretin/orexin system.

Autonomic dysregulation, recognized under the umbrella as dysautonomias are mitochondrial in nature.

Thyroid dysfunction is likely mitochondrial in nature; the interaction between thyroid hormones and mitochondria is direct. Given the mitochondria’s role in steroidogenesis, other hormone systems are likely modulated by mitochondrial functioning.

Research is emerging suggesting that gastrointestinal disturbances, particularly those of dysmotility like IBS, gastroparesis, constipation and pseudo obstruction but also anorexia are mitochondrial in nature. Indeed, the GI system has its own nervous system, called the enteric nervous system. Only 10-15% of GI motility is controlled from brain’s autonomic system. The rest is controlled on site by the enteric system, mostly from cells called the interstitial of cells Cajal – the smooth muscle cells that propagate contractility and rhythm and form the gut barrier between the inside contents and the rest of the body. The mitochondria control energy usage and production here. Mess with these cells, diminish oxygen usage, pull back energy production and all sorts of things go wrong. We can get ill-timed contractions or no contractions at all, making the movement of food stuffs through the GI impossible. Poor absorption and metabolism of nutrients, and increased permeability of the tight junctions allowing for the leaky gut scenario common in many chronic conditions, become prominent and are also symptoms of mitochondrial dysfunction. Even anorexia, the will to eat, can be disturbed significantly by mitochondrial damage..."

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Digging Deeper into Mitochondrial Dysfunction - Hormones Matter
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Could the disparate and chronic conditions plaguing Western populations have their roots in mitochondrial dysfunction?