Alpha lipoic acid

I have been taking ALA (alpha lipoic acid) to stabilize blood sugar dips and it helps really well.

However I have started to get stomach issues, with headaches, stiff neck and I suspect the ALA.

I have now stopped the ALA and stomach feels better, however feel very limp because of not taking it.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

 

When I have issues with supplements I have various methods I can try though not always with success. The first is to titrate the dose, adjust the dose so that it helps but does not cause problems. The second is to go on and off the supp, not staying on it for long. The third is intense pulse dosing. With resveratrol and now CoQ10 I get best results by taking a dose much higher than recommended on the bottle, but less than is used clinically, titrated to get a result, then go off it for several days. I take my week's dose of both in two doses several days apart, not every day. This works MUCH better for me.

Another possibility is cofactors. I think B1 is involved, glutathione will be impacted, and there are probably a few others including minerals (magnesium?) , I would have to go back to the literature to refresh my memory. Changes in these might also induce symptoms.

 

I was taking a supplement containing Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA) and acetyl-L-carnitine for (many?) years, but stopped a few years ago due to possible adverse effects.

I learned from Phoenix Rising (not always reliable) that ALA should not be taken if one has mercury/amalgam fillings, or within 3 months of getting rid of them: Potential risks of thiol supps: IV glutathione, alpha lipoic acid (ALA), N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) etc | Page 4 | Phoenix Rising ME/CFS Forums

I have lost all or most of my fillings now, and am trying it occasionally again.

 

Thank you! Cofactors is something I have not looked into.

 

Thank you for the link . Not sure if I have mercury fillings still

 

Is there and published research on the ALA-mercury fillings connection? Does anyone know what the negative effects are supposed to be? (I do take ALA, but I wouldn’t swear that I have any effects from it one way or the other.)

 

I just did a PubMed search and found the following:

alpha lipoic acid mercury - Search Results - PubMed (nih.gov)

Maybe best to just look at results in humans.

 

ALA really disturbed my sleep.

 

Oh interference with sleep, is bad. Hope it does not bother you now. I take it in the morning. I do not sleep well anyhow haha.