Related supplement product: VITA-MIND with ALA and Carnitine
Related ALA article: Alpha lipoic acid Health Benefits and Alheimer's
What is Alpha Lipoic Acid?
Other names: lipoic acid, R - Alpha Lipoic Acid, R-DHLA
Alpha lipoic acid is a fatty acid found naturally inside every cell in the body. It's needed by the body to produce the energy for our body's normal functions. Alpha lipoic acid converts glucose (blood sugar) into energy.
Alpha lipoic acid is also an antioxidant, a substance that neutralizes potentially harmful chemicals called free radicals. What makes alpha lipoic acid unique is that it functions in water and fat, unlike the more common antioxidants vitamins C and E, and it appears to be able to recycle antioxidants such as vitamin C and glutathione after they have been used up. Glutathione is an important antioxidant that helps the body eliminate potentially harmful substances. Alpha lipoic acid increases the formation of glutathione.
Alpha lipoic acid is made by the body and can be found in very small amounts in foods such as spinach, broccoli, peas, Brewer's yeast, brussel sprouts, rice bran, and organ meats. Alpha lipoic acid supplements are available in capsule form at health food stores, some drugstores, and online. For maximum absorption, the supplements should be taken on an empty stomach.
Why Use R - Alpha Lipoic Acid
Peripheral Neuropathy
Peripheral neuropathy can be caused by injury, nutritional deficiencies, chemotherapy or by conditions such as diabetes, Lyme disease, alcoholism, shingles, thyroid disease, and kidney failure. Symptoms can include pain, burning, numbness, tingling, weakness, and itching.
Alpha lipoic acid is thought to work as an antioxidant in both water and fatty tissue, enabling it to enter all parts of the nerve cell and protect it from damage.
Preliminary studies suggest that R DHLA alpha lipoic acid may help. In one of the largest studies on the use of alpha lipoic acid, 181 people took 600 mg, 1200 mg or 1800 mg of alpha lipoic acid a day or a placebo. After 5 weeks, alpha lipoic acid improved symptoms. The dose that was best tolerated while still providing benefit was 600 mg once daily.
Brain Function - Lipoic Acid
Alpha lipoic acid can cross the blood-brain barrier, a wall of tiny vessels and structural cells, and pass easily into the brain. It is thought to protect brain and nerve tissue by preventing free radical damage.
Age-Related Conditions
As an antioxidant, alpha lipoic acid can neutralize free radicals which can damage cells. Free radical damage is thought to contribute to aging and chronic illness.
R Alpha Lipoic Acid...best form Natural source DHLA
One study showed a combination of lipoic acid and acetyl-l-carnitine restored vitamin C levels in the liver cells of old rats to those seen in young rats. Another study showed that lipoic acid restored heart muscle cell structure in old rats to that of young rats after only two weeks of administration. In addition, lipoic acid was able to reverse the age-related increase in a dangerous pro-inflammatory cytokine, a natural bodily substance, called interleukin-1b.
What impressed us the most were studies published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences showing that lipoic acid and acetyl-l-carnitine:
Improved ambulatory function in old rats, with a significantly greater degree of improvement in old rats compared to young ones.
Partially reversed the decline in mitochondrial membrane function while inducing an increase in oxygen consumption, thereby improving cellular metabolic function in old rats.
Improved memory and reversed age-associated neuronal mitochondrial decay in old rats.
Restored an enzyme required for mitochondrial energy production (carnitine acetyltransferase), while simultaneously protecting against lipid peroxidation in old rats.
Alpha lipoic acid consists of two different forms (isomers) that have vastly different properties. The “R” form is the biologically active component (native to the body) that is responsible for DHLA lipoic acid’s phenomenal antioxidant effect. The “S” form is produced from chemical manufacture and is not very biologically active. Alpha lipoic acid supplements consist of the “R” and “S” form in a 50/50 ratio. That means a 100 mg alpha lipoic acid supplement is providing 50 mg of the more biologically active and efficient “R” DHLA form.
The human body normally produces and uses R-lipoic acid, the active form. R-lipoic acid DHLA significantly reduces inflammatory reactions and has been shown to be more potent than the combined “R” and “S” form that comprise alpha lipoic acid. R-lipoic acid increases cellular and mitochondrial antioxidant activity and prevents mitochondrial decay associated with aging.26 Because of this, the increase in oxidative stress with aging is said to be reduced. DHLA R- Alpha lipoic acid is neuroprotective and has been shown to help improve poor memory, while slowing cognition deficits associated with aging. R-lipoic acid has also demonstrated its ability to reduce the gain in body fat from aging by improving metabolic function. Studies have also shown R- Alpha lipoic acid to reduce oxidative damage to fats in the body and to block damage to the heart from stress. DHLA R-lipoic acid can increase glucose uptake in insulin resistant cells because it can mimic insulin’s properties. This active “R” natural DHLA form of alppha lipoic acid can regenerate the oxidized forms of antioxidants by recycling coenzyme Q10, vitamin C, vitamin E, and glutathione back into their active state.
Dangers and Side Effects
Side effects of alpha lipoic acid may include headache, tingling or a "pins and needles" sensation, skin rash, or muscle cramps.
There have been a few reports in Japan of a rare condition called insulin autoimmune syndrome in people using alpha lipoic acid. The condition causes hypoglycemia and antibodies directed against the body's own insulin without previous insulin therapy.
The safety of alpha lipoic acid in pregnant or nursing women, children, or people with kidney or liver disease is unknown.
Possible Drug Interactions
Alpha lipoic acid may improve blood sugar control, so people with diabetes who are taking medication to lower blood sugar, such as metformin (Glucophage), glyburide (DiaBeta, Glynase), should only take alpha lipoic acid under the supervision of a qualified health professional and have their blood sugar levels carefully monitored.
Animal studies indicate that alpha lipoic acid may alter thyroid hormone levels, so it could theoretically have the same effect in humans. People taking thyroid medications such as levothyroxine should be monitored by their healthcare provider.
