Supplement · Grade A

Alpha Lipoic Acid and medications.

Not yet catalogued in the Distil interactions database. We surface that distinction explicitly.

Alpha Lipoic Acid is in the Distil supplement database, evidence Grade A. The page below lists every medication we have explicitly assessed it against.

Alpha lipoic acid is an antioxidant that works in both fat- and water-based parts of the body and helps recycle vitamins C and E. Its strongest evidence is Grade A for diabetic neuropathy, with Ziegler's work as the anchor, and Grade B for broader antioxidant and metabolic effects including insulin sensitivity. The active form is R-ALA; standard racemic ALA is half inactive S-ALA, so effectively half the dose, and the usual target is 300 to 600mg of R-ALA. On interactions, it needs a 4-hour separation from thyroid medication. It also lowers blood glucose, so stacking it with metformin and berberine creates a triple glucose-lowering effect that warrants watching for hypoglycaemia. It pairs well with vitamins C and E in the antioxidant network. Take it with food to limit stomach upset, and consider a B-complex alongside, since very high doses can deplete thiamine.

We have not yet completed an explicit assessment of medications for Alpha Lipoic Acid in the Distil interactions database. We surface this distinction deliberately: the Distil checker tells you when we have explicitly assessed a pair and when we have not, because both are useful information. If you take Alpha Lipoic Acid alongside a medication, the checker below will surface anything already in our database, and the missing-item form at the bottom of the page routes uncatalogued pairs into our next curation pass.

What this list does not say. Pairs not flagged here are not implicitly safe. They are either not yet in our database, or fall outside our inclusion scope. Use the checker below to surface any medication, and submit a missing item if you take something we have not catalogued.

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For adults over 18. This tool gives evidence-graded information, not medical advice. Always discuss changes with your GP, especially if you take any medication, are pregnant, breastfeeding, or have a serious health condition.

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Your supplements

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How we decide

How we grade severity, choose what's in scope, and what we exclude.

Every call on this page is reasoned. We publish the full rubric for severity tiers, the medication inclusion logic, the evidence grades we accept, and what we deliberately leave out. About three thousand words. Worth reading once if you use this tool more than occasionally.

Read the full methodology

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If a supplement or medication you take isn't in our autocomplete, tell us. We go through what people flag every week and add what's missing.

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Distil's interactions database is reviewed and updated every quarter. We grade evidence transparently and publish our methodology, including every database change, at /about/methodology. This tool is information, not a substitute for clinical judgement. If you take medication and supplements together, your GP or pharmacist can review your full regimen against your medical history. If you want a full personalised stack reasoned against this same database, the Distil report is the next step up.