Last month I suddenly developed a strong tremor in my hands when trying to turn my wrists. My arms were feeling very shaky and even weaker than usual. I was feeling constantly confused, disoriented, and starving no matter how much I ate and even after eating high amounts of protein, the shakiness wouldn't stop.

This back and fourth tremor of my hands went on for 2 weeks.

Then I was able to pin point the day the tremor started. It was a few days after I went from 100 ALA twice a day, to 300 twice a day. I didn't put that together since I had no issue the first few days so I kept taking it for 2 weeks and the the tremor and constant shakiness, confusion, and hunger continued.
ALA lowers blood sugar....Bingo! I am a big time hypoglycemic to the point I'd pass out as a teenager if I ate lots of carbs or skipped meals.
The feeling I had on the ALA was like the worst low blood sugar of my life and I eat a very low carb diet so this stuff is powerfully strong in lowering blood sugar.
I stopped taking it and with in a week the back and fourth tremor stopped. My hands still have the tremor though which is upsetting. Im hoping my body will regulate itself and hoping I didn't do more damage as I have enough already.

Which ALA are you taking? ALA is most helpful for diabetics, insulin resistant patients, and those with mitochondrial damage from drugs/chem and or toxins.

There are 3 kinds of ALA... all have different properties.

Alpha Lipoic acid (thiocitic acid)with biotin

The standard treatment with old ALA (racemic mixture) starts at 600mg 2 or 3 times a day.

The old ALA is composed of S- form and R- form. The S- form is inactive biologically. So 1/2 of every dose is only the active form.

The supplement makers have separated ALA into R form and 2 types exist. The old R form which is not absorbed well (like the old ALA) and the new solubilized R called NaRALA... which is what many here take.

The old ALA racemic is also not absorbed well, and if taken with food there can be a 30% loss of absorption from an already poorly absorbed dosage form. People still use this old ALA because it is now offered at a much lower price than the newer improved versions of R only.

I took R-lipoic for over a year, and it did nothing to my glucose levels...absolutely nothing.(I tested with a monitor daily) But a few other posters here did see improvements in A1C when taking it.

I typically only recommend it for people with suspected glucose (elevation/ impairments), or who have mito damage. If you suspect it for giving you negative side effects, then by all means don't use it. ALA is a helper in moving glucose into the mitochondria of cells, for energy production. It is normally made by our body under healthy circumstances.

There is a suggestion that people low in B1 (thiamine) should not use lipoic acid supplements. But I do not have those studies handy.

ALA did that to me too. I'm not diabetic, but within a few hours of taking it, I felt very weak and shaky all over. Not the weakness in a specific area that my neuropathy causes, but an all over weakness.
I tried taking it in the morning with my smoothie, and it still did the same thing to me.
I bought a glucose monitor, just to be sure, and I was having low blood sugar within a few hours of taking it, which resolved once I stopped the ALA.

Yes, I am not diabetic either. Do you normally get low blood sugar (shakiness, confusion, irritability...) if you don't eat frequently enough or have enough protein? I've always had that issue and the ALA made it rage.

I got a bit hyper on 200mg a day of the new form...which is absorbed very quickly. But nothing at the lower dose once a day.

I was using Doctor's Best brand.

People do vary and have different chemistries due to genetics.

No, I don't normally get low blood sugar symptoms. That's why it took me a little while to figure out what was going on when I started the ALA.

Biotin causes me to have tremors and brain zaps. Alpha Lipoic Acid helps calm them. You need to use only the pure stuff. I find manufacturers often combine things that are antagonistic to each other and don't work together. They are completely wrong combinations.

Aside from the blood sugar question, with Alpha Lipoic Acid there is the controversial concept of it stirring up mercury and redistributing it to the brain (unless it's taken every 3-4 hours per the Andrew Cutler protocol)...discussed elsewhere on this forum and others...