Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago
Can Cuddling Improve Mitochondrial Function?
It might sound ridiculous until you start looking at the physics of metabolism.
A fascinating 2023 paper published in PLoS One proposed that endogenously produced infrared (IR) energy directly contributes to blood circulation independent of the heart itself, especially in the context of venous return, but also contributing to a small portion of arterial flow. In their model, blood flow persisted for nearly 50 minutes after the heart stopped, and introducing infrared energy significantly increased circulation.
This suggests the vascular system may possess its own infrared-dependent flow-driving mechanism, in addition to other known factors like movement, contraction, and compression.
This matters because mitochondria are the body’s primary generators of infrared energy.
We typically think of metabolism only in terms of ATP production, but mitochondria also emit heat and infrared radiation as a natural consequence of energy transfer. Pollack’s work on structured water suggests this infrared energy may organize water along the endothelial surface of blood vessels into a phase capable of facilitating flow.
In other words, circulation may not be driven solely by pressure from the heart. It may also be partially supported by the energetic state of the tissues themselves.
This creates a fascinating possibility: Human contact may conserve metabolic infrared energy that would otherwise dissipate into the environment.
Two metabolically depleted people in close physical contact may create a shared infrared environment that alters vascular flow, recovery, relaxation, and perhaps even mitochondrial efficiency itself.
Most infrared energy emitted from one body in this context would not be absorbed deeply into the other, but it could contribute to organization of water near the surface that improves circulation and begets more energy and more organization.
Cuddling has other benefits like oxytocin production too!
At Mitome, we're exploring the mitochondrial patterns that shape health long before dysfunction becomes disease.
What if the future of metabolic health depends on understanding not only the chemistry of energy production, but the physics of energy flow?
Discover what's possible when you understand the energy systems behind your health at Mito.me.
PMC10586597
Clip from @thomasdelauer
youtube.com/watch?v=BHApw964CVQ&t=796s
Can Cuddling Improve Mitochondrial Function?
It might sound ridiculous until you start looking at the physics of metabolism.
A fascinating 2023 paper published in PLoS One proposed that endogenously produced infrared (IR) energy directly contributes to blood circulation independent of the heart itself, especially in the context of venous return, but also contributing to a small portion of arterial flow. In their model, blood flow persisted for nearly 50 minutes after the heart stopped, and introducing infrared energy significantly increased circulation.
This suggests the vascular system may possess its own infrared-dependent flow-driving mechanism, in addition to other known factors like movement, contraction, and compression.
This matters because mitochondria are the body’s primary generators of infrared energy.
We typically think of metabolism only in terms of ATP production, but mitochondria also emit heat and infrared radiation as a natural consequence of energy transfer. Pollack’s work on structured water suggests this infrared energy may organize water along the endothelial surface of blood vessels into a phase capable of facilitating flow.
In other words, circulation may not be driven solely by pressure from the heart. It may also be partially supported by the energetic state of the tissues themselves.
This creates a fascinating possibility: Human contact may conserve metabolic infrared energy that would otherwise dissipate into the environment.
Two metabolically depleted people in close physical contact may create a shared infrared environment that alters vascular flow, recovery, relaxation, and perhaps even mitochondrial efficiency itself.
Most infrared energy emitted from one body in this context would not be absorbed deeply into the other, but it could contribute to organization of water near the surface that improves circulation and begets more energy and more organization.
Cuddling has other benefits like oxytocin production too!
At Mitome, we're exploring the mitochondrial patterns that shape health long before dysfunction becomes disease.
What if the future of metabolic health depends on understanding not only the chemistry of energy production, but the physics of energy flow?
Discover what's possible when you understand the energy systems behind your health at Mito.me.
PMC10586597
Clip from @thomasdelauer
youtube.com/watch?v=BHApw964CVQ&t=796s
