Other Properties of Alpha Lipoic Acid

[August]

Other Properties of Alpha Lipoic Acid/ Articles
Diabetes Interview, April 2000

As an adjunct to the article in the January 2000 issue of Diabetes Interview relating to alpha lipoic acid, I suggest you do an additional literature search on this subject as there are other important properties of alpha lipoic acid that were not mentioned.

For example, it inhibits glycosylation of proteins and therefore can reduce the incidence of many long-term diabetic complication. It also increases insultin sensitivity, even in slim, type 1 diabetics who are not insulin resistant. It should also be pointed out that while large doses are necessary to achieve many of the effects, the water-soluble version is effective in much lower doses. Inhibiting glycosylation of proteins usually reduces levels of HbA1c in people who take this product and means they can no longer use HbA1c results as an indication of average blood sugar.

[slipperyelm]

I want to take ALA eventually, but wanted to wait until I was stable on other things I'm doing so that I could see if ALA had a measurable effect on my blood glucose. I understand that because of the way it prevents glycosilation of proteins, including of the red blood cell proteins, that it can lower HbA1c even if it does not lower one's BG levels. Yay, to preventing protein glycosilation!

I wish ALA were not so darned expensive. The doses I've read about being helpful were going to cost quite a bit. I wish there were studies to discern whether there is a threshhold level one needs to consume or whether even a little ALA is a little helpful.

I like your style, August. I will be watching for your posts.

[August]

ALA is not expensive. I pay $8.88 for 120 300mg capsules (a 4 mo supply) at Vitacost.com A years supply of Biotin 5mg, is about $12. In the walk in retail stores prices can be quite high. The lowest prices online that I've found are usually at either Vitacost or VitaminShoppe.

I don't know that the super high doses used in the German studies are really necessary. 300mg/day works just fine for me (and I'm a giant). For a small person 100mg might work just as well. Sometimes less is more.

[PepsiLvr]

I take it now for neuropathy although I haven't been taking it long enough to tell if it is helping or not. I use a product called Neuro-Betic from Flourish Wellness. I have heard that they have high quality products and the ingredients list looks good too. This article is a good read.

Mayo Clinic Article on Alpha Lipoic Acid (http://www.mayoclinic.org/news2003-rst/1733.html)

[slipperyelm]

Interesting. The only prices I have seen have been online. And I don't recall the dosage, but a single bottle was more like $30. And it was going to take more than one bottle per month. I'll have to read up on it again. I'll start with PepsiLvr's link, I guess.

[Dan Gato]

Slipper, go to Walmart, or other chain.
I've seen ALA there very cheap, even at Trader's Joe is cheap. Like a month's supply for $6, make sure you also get Biotin at the same time.
Biotin is even cheaper.

[duck]

ALA is not expensive. I pay $8.88 for 120 300mg capsules (a 4 mo supply) at Vitacost.com A years supply of Biotin 5mg, is about $12. In the walk in retail stores prices can be quite high. The lowest prices online that I've found are usually at either Vitacost or VitaminShoppe.

I don't know that the super high doses used in the German studies are really necessary. 300mg/day works just fine for me (and I'm a giant). For a small person 100mg might work just as well. Sometimes less is more.

I'd recommend going liquid if you are looking at economy--Flax Seed and any fish oils are cheaper in liquid form:

Using Vitamin Shoppe generic brand as an example, they sell 300 capsules of Flax Seed Oil for $19.00...1 capsule is 1 gram of flax seed oil.

On the other hand, they sell Flax Seed Oil in liquid form 16 ounces for $10.00. You get sixteen 1 Tablespoon servings, which breaks down to 14 grams of flax seed oil per serving...14 x 16 = 224 grams of oil per bottle.

So, if you consume 14 capsule of the capsulated flax per day, for one month that would cost you about $27.50 a month. Using rough math, two bottles of the liquid would cost you $20, and would last a little longer than a month for a 14-grams-per-day serving.

Anyway, its what I do.

[Dan Gato]

Duck, Have you noticed any improvements over the time that you've taken ALA?

Who has improved because of ALA?

[duck]

Duck, Have you noticed any improvements over the time that you've taken ALA?

Who has improved because of ALA?

I'm a Type 1, so many of the things that could be helpful for a Type 2 won't do me any good since my body makes NO insulin at all...

BUT, anecdotally...My skin is softer. And that says something considering winter and the harsh cold/dry heat we use to beat that cold. The purported benefits of ALA wouldn't be immediately noticeable, like a caffeine pill. The benefits of reducing the chances of heart disease, lowering cholesterol, etc., would take some time, and obviously some labs could help bear those results out.

The fact that your body cannot otherwise make essential fatty acids without consuming them lends *some* credence to at least supplementing for them...the same argument has been made for essential amino acids. Still, I would caution anyone considering supplementing their diets to at least do a simple dietary analysis and determine if there is potential that they may be deficient in a nutrient...ie, if you NEVER eat fruits or vegies, yeah, you run a decent risk of scurvy or B-vitamin deficiency. But if you consume a lot of citrus, then Vitamin C supplementation may not be necessary. The same should apply to any supplementation strategy.

[dgrilli]

What researchers say about the two Lipoic Acids?

"We're finding - and others are, too - that the R(+)-form - the natural form - is much more powerful than the racemic mixture ... Hopefully ... companies are going to be producing on more of a clinical scale the R(+)-form of lipoic acid, because we're finding very significant effects using this, as opposed to the racemic mixture." [This is what Insulow has done]
Dr. Tory Hagen, in Mitochondrial Decay in Aging.

"We have presented in this study new information indicating that this enhancement of glucose metabolism is stereospecific, with the R(+)-enantiomer being much more effective than the S(-)- enantiomer."
Dr. Ryan Streeper and colleagues, in The American Journal of Physiology.

"Lipoic acid sold in a health food store is a synthetic mixture, a racemic mixture. And R[+]- is the natural form and S[-]- is an unnatural one ... And in our hands R[+]- works and S[-]- doesn't."
Dr. Bruce Ames, in Strategies for Engineered Negligible Senescence.

"R[+]-LA [that is, R(+)-lipoic acid], and not a racemic mixture of R[+]-and S[-]- LA, should be considered a choice for therapeutic applications."
Dr. Lester Packer and colleagues, in Free Radical Biology and Medicine.

"The S[-]-enantiomer … part of the racemate, which is present as about a 50% impurity, needs to be eliminated."
Dr. Guido Zimmer and colleagues, in Methods in Enzymoogy.


Sounds like if your getting your supply from the Health Food or Vitamin Stores your getting ripped off.

I'm in my 3rd week of using the good stuff according to the above. I used to have a chronic red rash and scaling around my nose and mouth it is now gone. It's probably from the Biotin 75mcg in it.

Sounds like nothing but some good come from this stuff so I ordered 2 more boxes of the stuff (Insulow).

The claim is if you have insulin resistance your going to need up 600mg a day of this. Thats what I have been taking. Also this stuff is reported to take some time to do its magic up to 6 weeks to get going.

I'm now starting to notice post prandial numbers going down.

Anybody using the good stuff, if so how about telling us what it doing for you.

I have been very skeptical about supplements and will remain so.