Re: Alpha Lipoic Acid and rash (REPLY)

[Guest guest]

I do know that Alpha-Lipoic acid has been used to treat chronic hepatitis

because it relieves stress on the liver and helps it rid the body of toxins. It

is the standard treatment for Amanita poisoning (Amanita is a highly poisonous

mushroom). Alpha-Lipoic acid can help lessen the toxic effects of drugs used

during surgery and for pain control afterwards.

Jay are you sure it wasn't a detox (die-off) better known as a herx?? Many

folks get this itchy, red rash syndrome when they are having a herx reaction.

Here is a great URL on ALA it is WELL WORTH the reading time>>>>>

http://www.thorne.com/altmedrev/fulltext/lipoic.html

Alpha-Lipoic Acid: Biological Effects and Clinical Implications

Trent W. Nichols, Jr. M.D.

===========================================

MORE ON ALPHA LIPOIC ACID

Speaking of detoxification, Alpha Lipoic Acid plays a significant

role in ridding the body of heavy metal toxins (mercury, arsenic, copper,

excess iron, cadmium, zinc, lead, etc.). Alpha Lipoic Acid does this

by chelation. The word “chelation†is derived from the Greek word

“chela,†which means “crab claw†or “grasping organ.†Certain

natural,

chelating agents have the ability to grasp and bind metallic substances,

neutralize them, and carry them to a place where they can be easily

secreted from the body.

Mercury, for example, is one of the most toxic metals and is present

everywhere in our environment. High levels of mercury are found in

much of our natural waters, soils, and even food supplies. The sources

of this heavy metal contamination are fabric softeners, printer inks,

dental fillings, house paints, common plastics, medications, wood

preservatives, etc. Mercury that accumulates in the body can cause

all sorts of havoc. Chronically-high levels of mercury are associated

with immunosuppression, neurological disease, environmental allergies,

arthritis, hair loss, muscle weakness, etc.

The good news? Alpha Lipoic Acid can help the body rid itself of toxic

metals through chelation. Members taking our Alpha Lipoic Acid have

reported noticing a “unique†smell to their urine or sweat after taking

Alpha

Lipoic Acid. One member used words like “skunk†and “plastic wrap†to

describe the smell, which abated after a few weeks of use. Just the body

doing its job once toxins were unlocked for secretion!

Don’t forget that Alpha Lipoic Acid is a fantastic antioxidant (fat- and

water-soluble) and supports blood sugar normalization (important for

diabetics).

==========================

Alpha-Lipoic acid:

Quite Possibly the " Universal " Antioxidant

Copyright © 1996 by Jack Challem, The Nutrition Reporter™

All rights reserved.

This article originally appeared in the July 1996 issue of The Nutrition

Reporterâ„¢ newsletter.

If it's essential role in health is any indication, alpha-lipoic acid may

very well join the ranks of vitamins C and E as part of your first-line of

defense against free radicals. Discovered in 1951, it serves as a coenzyme

in the Krebs cycle and in the production of cellular energy. In the late

1980s, researchers realized that alpha-lipoic acid had been overlooked as a

powerful antioxidant.

Over the past few years, the pace of research on lipoic acid has increased

dramatically. Last year, Lester Packer, PhD, of the University of

California, Berkeley, published a lengthy review article on alpha-lipoic

acid in Free Radical Biology & Medicine (1995;19:227-50). In April 1996, he

presented a short review of it in the same journal (FRBM;20:625-6).

Several qualities distinguish alpha-lipoic acid from other antioxidants, and

Packer has described it at various times as the " universal, " " ideal, " and

" metabolic " antioxidant. It neutralizes free radicals in both the fatty and

watery regions of cells, in contrast to vitamin C (which is water soluble)

and vitamin E (which is fat soluble).

The body routinely converts some alpha-lipoic acid to dihydrolipoic acid,

which appears to be an even more powerful antioxidant. Both forms of lipoic

acid quench peroxynitrite radicals, an especially dangerous type consisting

of both oxygen and nitrogen, according to a recent paper in FEBS Letters

(Whiteman M, et al., FEBS Letters, 1996; 379:74-6). Peroxynitrite radicals

play a role in the development of atherosclerosis, lung disease, chronic

inflammation, and neurological disorders.

Alpha-lipoic acid also plays an important role in the synergism of

antioxidants, what Packer prefers to call the body's " antioxidant network. "

It directly recycles and extends the metabolic lifespans of vitamin C,

glutathione, and coenzyme Q10, and it indirectly renews vitamin E.

In Germany, alpha-lipoic acid is an approved medical treatment for

peripheral neuropathy, a common complication of diabetes. It speeds the

removal of glucose from the bloodstream, at least partly by enhancing

insulin function, and it reduces insulin resistance, an underpinning of many

cases of coronary heart disease and obesity. The therapeutic dose for lipoic

acid is 600 mg/day. In the United States, it is sold as a dietary

supplement, usually as 50 mg tablets. (The richest food source of

alpha-lipoic acid is red meat.)

" From a therapeutic viewpoint, few natural antioxidants are ideal, " Packer

recently explained in Free Radical Biology & Medicine. " An ideal therapeutic

antioxidant would fulfill several criteria. These include absorption from

the diet, conversion in cells and tissues into usable form, a variety of

antioxidant actions (including interactions with other antioxidants) in both

membrane and aqueous phases, and low toxicity. "

" Alpha-lipoic acid...is unique among natural antioxidants in its ability to

fulfill all of these requirements, " he continued, " making it a potentially

highly effective therapeutic agent in a number of conditions in which

oxidative damage has been implicated. "

Other research on alpha-lipoic acid has shown that it might:

help people with genetic defects leading to muscle myopathies (Barbiroli B,

et al., Journal of Neurology, 1995;242:472-7);

reduce ischemia/reperfusion injury to the heart and brain. (Schonheit K, et

al., Biochimica et Biophysica Acta, 1995;1271:335-42; and Cao X and Phillis

JW, Free Radical Research, 1995;23:365-70); and

inhibit the activation of " nuclear factor kappa-B, " a protein complex

involved in cancer and the progression of AIDS. (Suzuki YJ, et al.,

Biochemical & Biophysical Research Communications, 1992;189:1709-15).

" The therapeutic potential of alpha-lipoic acid is just beginning to be

explored, " observed Packer, " but this compound holds great promise. "

The information provided by Jack Challem and The Nutrition Reporterâ„¢

newsletter is strictly educational and not intended as medical advice. For

diagnosis and treatment, consult your physician.