Winter Mile

Winter Mile

“Every mile is two in winter.”

That chilly quote from poet George Herbert is a good metaphor for today’s topic.

Every mile is two for diabetics who are coping with distal symmetric polyneuropathy – a peripheral nerve disorder that causes numbness, or prickly, burning pains in the extremities, most often in the feet.

A new study confirms previous research with good news about an antioxidant supplement that’s an effective treatment for this debilitating problem.

Simple solution

Distal symmetric polyneuropathy (DSP) is the most common type of diabetic neuropathy. In addition to numbness and prickly, burning sensations, advanced DSP complications may include impaired coordination, balance problems, urinary urgency, erectile dysfunction, acid reflux, lightheadedness, and depression.

Previous research has shown alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) to be effective in treating neuropathy and other degenerative diseases. ALA is sometimes called the “mother antioxidant” because it does something no other antioxidant is known to d It has the unique capacity to recycle vitamins C and E from their molecular building blocks.

In a previous e-Alert I told you about a 2003 Mayo Clinic study in which 120 subjects with diabetic neuropathy were divided into two groups. One group received 600 mg of ALA in intravenous daily doses for two weeks, and the other group received a placebo. As reported in Diabetes Care, the researchers found that ALA “significantly and rapidly” reduced both the severity and frequency of diabetic neuropathy symptoms.

The most recent neuropathy test of ALA involved oral doses. (Intravenous ALA is not currently available in the U.S.)

An International team led by researchers at the German Diabetes Center in Dsseldorf, Germany, recruited 181 subjects with either type 1 or type 2 diabetes. All of the subjects had similar levels of DSP symptoms.

STUDY ABSTRACT

• Subjects were divided into four groups and received either a placebo, or one of three ALA doses daily: 600 mg, 1,200 mg, or 1,800 mg
• In each of the ALA groups, significant improvements were noted in burning and stabbing pains, compared to the placebo group, in which improvements were only modest
• Numbness was not relieved in any of the ALA groups
• For subjects in the 1,800 mg group, symptoms began improving in the first week
• Symptoms began improving in the second week in the other two ALA groups

Watch that dosage

In the Mayo Clinic study mentioned above, no side effects were recorded among subjects receiving 600 mg of intravenous ALA daily. In the German study, however, ALA side effects included nausea, vomiting, and dizziness, but only in the two groups that took the higher doses. In their conclusions, the authors wrote, “An oral dose of 600 mg once daily appears to provide the optimum risk-to-benefit ratio.”

One of the factors to consider when supplementing with ALA is that it is quickly metabolized and cleared from the liver. As a result, a supplement will only cause a relatively brief rise in blood levels of ALA. Several studies have concluded that significant benefits can result from an intake of 50 mg per day. But whatever your dosage, it’s best to take lower amounts throughout the day, rather than all at once.

Research shows that ALA may lower blood-sugar levels in normal, or non-diabetic, subjects as well as in those with diabetes, so it should be used with caution by anyone who tends to have low blood sugar levels. In any case, you should discuss ALA use with your doctor before adding it to your daily regimen.