Alpha-lipoic acid(ALA) is an antioxidant that is produced in the human body, and hence is not an essential fatty-acid, and it is located in every cell. It assists the body’s production of ATP from glucose. ATP (adenosine tri-phosphate) is the molecular structure used in the body for all activities that require energy. Antioxidants are substances that attack free radicals. Free radicals are harmful waste products produced when the body transforms food into energy. Free radicals cause chemical reactions that can damage cells in the body, making it harder for the body to fight off infections. They also damage body organs and are carcinogenic.
Unlike other antioxidants, alpha-lipoic acid possesses the properties of a surfactant allowing it to be both fat and water soluble. This allows it to be effective in all body spaces. Additionally, antioxidants are depleted as they attack free radicals, but evidence indicates that alpha-lipoic acid assists in the regeneration of these other antioxidants. Scientific studies have led researchers to believe that ALA operates in concert with vitamins C, E, and the antioxidant glutathione, recycling them when they’re depleted. Many studies have been conducted confirming the health benefits of alpha-lipoic acid, including recent findings that ALA offers neuroprotective and possibly cognitive enhancing effects. ALA is not normally used as a supplement to quickly lose weight, rather, as a slow and steady weight loss aid.
It is worth mentioning that alpha-lipoic acid is not the same as alpha linolenic acid, which is an omega-3 fatty acid that may help heart health. Confusion can arise because both are sometimes abbreviated ALA.
Alpha-lipoic acid can lower blood sugar levels, and its ability to kill free radicals may help reduce pain, burning, itching, tingling, and numbness in people who have nerve damage caused by diabetes (called peripheral neuropathy). Alpha-lipoic acid has been used for years for this purpose in Europe, and at least one study found that intravenous (IV) doses of alpha-lipoic acid helped reduce symptoms of diabetic peripheral neuropathy. In one European study twelve subjects with normal glucose tolerance served as a control group in terms of insulin sensitivity. At the conclusion of the treatment, insulin sensitivity of diabetic patients was significantly increased: short-term oral alpha-lipoic acid treatment increases insulin sensitivity in patients with type two diabetes.
Taking alpha-lipoic acid helps another diabetes-related condition called autonomic neuropathy, which affects the nerves supplying the heart. One study found that 73 people with autonomic neuropathy improved when taking 800 mg of alpha-lipoic acid orally compared to placebo.
ALA has also been shown to be helpful in weight loss. ALA is not normally used for rapid weight loss. However, steady use can result in weight loss along with the other health benefits of alpha-lipoic acid. It gives rise to an increased rate of glucose uptake and oxidative metabolism. The result is that more energy is used faster in the cells of your body, with fewer calories available for storage as fat. Furthermore, the increased glucose metabolism with resultant decreases in blood glucose levels will help prevent the storage of belly fat. This occurs because poor glucose utilization results in pancreatic insulin spikes. These elevated levels of insulin result in fat storage due to the anabolic nature of insulin.
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