It is claimed that alpha-lipoic acid (aka thioctic acid) can relieve the symptoms of diabetic neuropathy from which I suffer. As I could not find reputable clinical reports on the Internet I have begun a self-experiment to find out whether these claims have any substance in fact.
Alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) plays important roles in the mitochondria. It works as a co-factor for several enzymes related to the metabolism of energy. It is produced naturally inside the body but you can also take it as a dietary supplement.
Taken in high doses as a supplement, alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) is said to act as an antioxidant and to increase insulin sensitivity and reduce the symptoms of nerve damage in people with type 2 diabetes. It may also improve circulation. Apparently these claims have been tested clinically according to the makers of ALA supplements but I have not been able to confirm these trials using Internet research.
I suffer from diabetic neuropathy to a minor degree. Though I have been able to put off the horrible outcomes of diabetes using the diet I describe in my book Beating Diabetes, I have been unable to alleviate the symptoms of neuropathy in my feet. I feel that my diet has prevented these symptoms from getting worse but it certainly has not reversed the condition. Thus I have begun experimenting with ALA on myself in an effort to reduce the symptoms of neuropathy using the maximum recommended doses of ALA.
The dosages recommended by the manufacturers of ALA range from 600mg to 1200mg per day, and the word is that it takes at least six weeks before these dosages supplement begin to reduce symptoms. On the 15th June 2013 I began taking 1200mg a day (in three doses of 400mg each) of ALA manufactured by Olimp Laboratories. I will continue taking this dosage until the recommended six weeks are up.
After just two weeks there has been no discernible effect on my neuropathy symptoms. I’ll continue posting on this topic.
