Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA) in the Treatment of Diabetic Neuropathy

Diabetes is one of those conditions that must be treated for life, and requires lifestyle shifts and constant monitoring. Diabetics are in for the long haul, no matter which of the two major types of diabetes they are living with. Both type-1 and type-2 diabetes are associated with elevated glucose levels in the blood and an inability of the cells to take up sugars which have the energy they need to perform the tasks they have to perform every day.

All forms of diabetes present a serious problem to sufferers, in that they increase the risk of heart attack, stroke, eye disease, and kidney failure. One of the most troublesome long-term effects of diabetes is diabetic neuropathy, which involves changes in the peripheral nerves with associated pins and needles sensations or loss of sensation in the hands and feet.

Alpha lipoic acid (ALA) is found in liver, potatoes, and broccoli, and is prescribed in Germany for diabetic neuropathy. ALA has no effect on glucose levels; it is promoted for diabetic neuropathy. In a three-week German study of 328 patients with type-2 diabetes and diabetic neuropathy patients received either intravenous ALA or a placebo. The study results found a statically significant improvement in symptoms of pain, tingling, and disability related to neuropathy in those who got the ALA. The study also looked at 73 patients with type-2 diabetes and cardiac neuropathy who had taken either oral ALA or placebo - there was an improvement in measures of cardiac heart rate conductance in those who took ALA.

In an attempt to replicate these promising results, another multi-center study of 509 patients with diabetic neuropathy received three weeks of intravenous ALA followed by six months of oral ALA or placebo. This time there were no statistically significant differences in ALA versus placebo in changes in the total symptoms. The same group also looked at 120 patients after three weeks of intravenous ALA or placebo use, and they showed a statistically significant change in symptoms. So although there appears to be some benefit from ALA, study results vary and it is not clear that there is lasting benefit for diabetic neuropathy.

Learn more about alternatives to medications and hidden risks of prescription medications in 'Before You Take That Pill: Why the Drug Industry May be Bad for Your Health: Risks and Side Effects You Won't Find on the Label of Commonly Prescribed Drugs, Vitamins and Supplements', by researcher and physician J. Douglas Bremner, MD.

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