Lipoic acid or alpha lipoic acid (ALA) is a fatty acid found naturally inside every cell of the body. It is a powerful antioxidant; a substance that neutralizes potentially harmful chemicals called free radicals in the body. Our bodies produce it in very small amounts and it is also found in foods such as spinach, Brewer’s yeast, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, peas, organ meats and rice bran. It converts glucose (or blood sugar) into energy. Let’s take at look at this widely touted supplement.

What makes ALA unique and gives it nutritional value is that it is both water and fat soluble, unlike the more common antioxidants vitamins C and E, and it appears to be able to recycle and extend the metabolic lifespan of antioxidants such as of vitamin C, glutathione, and coenzyme Q10, and it indirectly renews vitamin E. Vitamin C lessens oxidative stress while glutathione helps detoxify the liver. Coenzyme Q10 helps convert food energy into energy inside every cell while vitamin E helps with nerve conduction.

Lipoic acid helps treat the symptoms of a common complication of diabetes called peripheral neuropathy. By speeding the removal of glucose from the bloodstream, ALA enhances insulin function and reduces insulin resistance. A large number of cases of coronary heart disease and obesity are a direct or indirect result of those two factors. Symptoms such as prickling sensations, numbness, burning and sharply cutting pain are relieved by this very useful nutritional supplement.

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