Really 100mg of stabilized ALA? Can you explain? I always thought regular ALA are comprised of components R and S. We don’t absorb the S so half of it is wasted, therefore I have always concluded that you need to take 300mg of ALA-R versus 600mg of ALA.

Are you implying because it’s stabilized, 100mg of stabilized = 300mg ALA-R (non stablized)=600mg ALA?

This is the thread where we all at PN discuss and discover the solubility of the various lipoic acid formulations.

http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/sh...light=Blaylock

I'm not a chemist or pharmacologist, so I cannot explain the reasons myself. At first, I assumed the same as you, that 300 mg would be what's required, but it's not. The stabilized form had nothing to do with it; 100 mg. of regular RLA works as well as 600 mg of ALA, though some people do take more.

I do recall digging the info out of threads here, and following up on the web, even if I didn't understand it entirely. I'm on my first month of the stabilized form now (had to use up supplies of regular RLA) but I have not personally noted any difference over regular RLA as yet.

I started RLA over a year ago now, and it has been near-miraculous in my case (results may vary considerably). The stuff stopped my burning/pins & needles pain from PN within 48 hrs, and progression of the condition has stopped as well (but I cannot say for certain the RLA is responsible for that - it could be a number of factors).

Doc

To put it simply:

RX drugs go thru an expensive process to make them BIOavailable...meaning they have to be absorbed a certain amount in each person, reliably. This is part of the new drug application evaluated by the FDA. Generics have to match this data within certain statistical limits.

But supplements do not go thru this process unless the maker
chooses to. So therefore, people taking supplements, vitamins and minerals, may not absorb what the label claims is in it.

A case in point is magnesium OXIDE...which for decades was the only supplement of magnesium out there. But it is very poorly absorbed we know now when recent studies compared various salts of magnesium and found OXIDE the worst in this regard. But doctors still prescribe it...unknowing. The NIH website has this information on it now, but of course doctors don't read it.
http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/magnesium/
This is only one example. Other supplements have solubility and BIOavailability issues also. CoQ-10, Lipoic acid, curcumin,
zinc, B12, to name a few. Sometimes it is as easy as taking on an empty stomach, but other times the supplement has to be modified to be absorbed better. R-lipoic is one that when solubilized with sodium, is better absorbed, and hence works better at lower doses. Alpha lipoic therefore has 3 issues.
1) the old racemic mix...is not all useful to the body
2) focusing on R-lipoic sounds good, and is out there...BUT....
3) Sodium RALA (NaRALA) is most soluble in the stomach and hence thought to be the best one we have now. (this one is called STABILIZED on the label.)

Some new technologies are coming for liposomal nano-emulsions of various vitamins and supplements, and we will see more of these soon. Vit C and curcumin are examples available now in liposomal forms to enhance absorption further.
So far they tend to cost more money, but that will probably change as time passes and demand accelerates for them.

And in the future what we say now, will most likely be obsolete.