Alpha-Lipoic Acid

[Guest guest]

Alpha-. Lipoic Acid

 

Claims, Benefits: Prevents or treats many age-related diseases, from

heart disease and stroke to diabetes and cataracts.

 

Bottom Line: This potent and versatile antioxidant may some day be seen

as a very important supplement. But for now, not enough is known to

recommend it. If you have diabetes, heart disease, Parkinson’s, or

Alzheimer’s and decide to take it, tell your doctor.

 

Full Article, Wellness Letter, August 2003:

 

The Latest on ALA

 

In 1999 we looked at a relatively new antioxidant supplement called

alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) and concluded that it might one day prove to be

very important, but that it was too early to recommend it. Since then

more studies on it have been done. Is the evidence today strong enough

to support its use?

 

Scientists first discovered the importance of ALA in the 1950s, and

recognized it as an antioxidant in 1988. It has been the subject of a

tremendous amount of basic research around the world, some being done at

the University of California, Berkeley by Dr. Lester Packer, a leading

expert on antioxidants.

 

The body needs ALA to produce energy. It plays a crucial role in the

mitochondria, the energy-producing structures in cells. The body

actually makes enough ALA for these basic metabolic functions. This

compound acts as an antioxidant, however, only when there is an excess

of it and it is in the " free " state in the cells. But there is little

free ALA circulating in your body, unless you consume supplements or get

it injected. Foods contain only tiny amounts of it. What makes ALA

special as an antioxidant is its versatility—it helps deactivate an

unusually wide array of cell-damaging free radicals in many bodily

systems.

 

In particular, ALA helps protect the mitochondria and the genetic

material, DNA. As we age, mitochondrial function is impaired, and it’s

theorized that this may be an important contributor to some of the

adverse effects of aging. ALA also works closely with vitamin C and E

and some other antioxidants, " recycling " them and thus making them much

more effective.

 

ALA is being studied in animals and in humans as a preventive and/or

treatment for many age-related diseases. These range from heart disease

and stroke to diabetes and Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease, as well

as declines in energy, muscle strength, brain function, and immunity. It

is also being studied for HIV disease and multiple sclerosis. In

Germany, in particular, it is already prescribed to treat long-term

complications of diabetes, such as nerve damage, thought to result in

part from free-radical damage; there is also evidence that it can help

decrease insulin resistance and thus help control blood sugar. Many

studies have yielded promising results; others are still underway.

 

Add some carnitine

 

One of the best-known proponents of ALA is Dr. Bruce Ames, professor of

molecular and cell biology at the University of California, Berkeley. He

has helped develop and study an ALA supplement called Juvenon, which has

been patented by UC Berkeley. Juvenon, in addition, contains another

promising compound, acetyl-L-carnitine, which is also involved in energy

production in the mitochondria. Ames and his colleagues have found that

high doses of these compounds, in combination, enable elderly rats to

function like younger ones. Of course, the same results may not occur in

humans. Human studies are just getting started.

 

Why it is still too soon to act

 

Though evidence has been accumulating, it is clear that the research on

ALA is still in its early stages. Large, long-term, well-controlled

studies on human are needed. No one knows what dose should be used for

what ailment. Most studies have used 100 to 600 milligrams a day, but

higher doses have also been studied.

 

Though ALA so far appears to be safe, the long-term effects of large

supplemental doses are unknown. If ALA is as powerful as it seems, there

may be a danger in too much of a good thing. In addition, while in

Germany it is sold only by prescription and (like other supplements) is

monitored by the government, in the U.S. you have no way of knowing

what’s in the bottles.

 

 

 

Bottom line: We still advise waiting until more research has been done.

If you have diabetes, heart disease, Parkinson’s, or Alzheimer’s, you

may be unwilling to wait. In that case, talk to your doctor before

taking ALA. The supplement may, for instance, affect the dosage of your

diabetes medication.

 

UC Berkeley Wellness Letter, August 2003