What are the benefits of taking Alpha Lipoic Acid?
Overview
Alpha lipoic acid has gained a lot of attention in recent years.
It’s an organic compound that acts as a powerful antioxidant in the body.
Your body produces alpha lipoic acid naturally, but it’s also found in a variety of foods and as a dietary supplement.
Research suggests that it may play a role in weight loss, diabetes, and other health conditions.
What is alpha lipoic acid?
Alpha lipoic acid is an organic compound found in all human cells.
It’s made inside the mitochondrion — also known as the powerhouse of cells — where it helps enzymes turn nutrients into energy.
What’s more, it has powerful antioxidant properties.
Alpha lipoic acid is both water- and fat-soluble, which allows it to work in every cell or tissue in the body. Meanwhile, most other antioxidants are either water- or fat-soluble.
For instance, vitamin C is only water-soluble, while vitamin E is only fat-soluble.
The antioxidant properties of alpha-lipoic acid have been linked to several benefits, including lower blood sugar levels, reduced inflammation, slowed skin aging, and improved nerve function.
Humans only produce alpha lipoic acid in small amounts. That’s why many turn to certain foods or supplements to optimise their intake.
Animal products like red meat and organ meats are great sources of alpha-lipoic acid, but plant foods like broccoli, tomatoes, spinach, and Brussels sprouts also contain it.
That said, supplements can pack up to 1,000 times more alpha-lipoic acid than food sources.
Alpha lipoic acid and weight loss
Research has shown that alpha lipoic acid may affect weight loss in several ways.
Animal studies indicate that it can reduce the activity of the enzyme AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), which is located in your brain’s hypothalamus.
When AMPK is more active, it may increase feelings of hunger.
On the other hand, suppressing AMPK activity may increase the number of calories your body burns at rest. Thus, animals who took alpha lipoic acid burned more calories.
However, human studies show that alpha lipoic acid only slightly impacts weight loss.
In short, it seems that alpha lipoic acid has just a slight effect on weight loss in humans.
Alpha lipoic acid and diabetes
Diabetes affects more than 400 million adults worldwide.
A key feature of uncontrolled diabetes is high blood sugar levels. If left untreated, this can cause health problems, such as vision loss, heart disease, and kidney failure.
Alpha lipoic acid has become popular as a potential aid for diabetes, as it’s been shown to lower blood sugar levels in both animals and humans.
In animal studies, it has lowered blood sugar levels by up to 64%.
Other studies in adults with metabolic syndrome have shown that it may reduce insulin resistance and lower fasting blood glucose and HbA1c levels.
Scientists believe that alpha lipoic acid helps lower blood sugar