Antioxidant Helps Diabetic Nerve Damage
ROCHESTER, Minn. (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- A new study shows consuming the antioxidant alpha lipoic acid (ALA) can significantly improve symptoms of diabetic neuropathy. Neuropathy is nerve damage that can result as a complication of diabetes. It affects about 50 percent of patients.
Researchers from the Mayo Clinic and a medical center in Russia tested 120 patients with diabetes who suffered from neuropathy. The patients received either ALA or a placebo for three weeks, and all participants were given a placebo during the fourth week.
Researchers measured the severity of patients' pain by using a total symptom score system. Those who took ALA saw a 5.7-point total improvement, while those on placebo only improved by 1.8 points.
Researchers say these results show ALA significantly improves the frequency and severity of diabetic neuropathy symptoms, which may include burning and sharply cutting pain, prickling sensations and numbness.
Prior to this study, the alternatives for managing symptoms of diabetic neuropathy were narcotics, analgesics and antiepileptic drugs, which all have considerable side effects. ALA produced no unfavorable side effects in patients in this study.
ALA is available over the counter, in oral form, and in small doses. Peter Dyck, M.D., of the Mayo Clinic, warns against putting too much faith in the drug. He says: "It may well be worthwhile for treatment, but I'd rather patients not go out swallowing large amounts of this drug yet. It isn't FDA-approved for this purpose."
Dr. Dyck adds that a large, multi-center trial of oral ALA is underway. He says, "We should see what the further data show before we give this widely to patients with diabetic neuropathy."
SOURCE: Diabetes Care 2003;26:770-776
This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, who offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, go to: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.