Conventional synthetic alpha lipoic acid is racemic, meaning it consists of 50% natural R-alpha lipoic acid, like that found in plants, animals and the human body, and 50% unnatural S-alpha lipoic acid, which behaves like a mirror image of the former and would not exist if not for chemical synthesis. Due to the low melting point of lipoic acid crystals, solvent residues such as cyclohexane or ethyl acetate often remain from the manufacturing process. Our pure R-ALA does not contain any of the common contaminants found in solvent residues.
However, R-alpha lipoic acid is highly unstable and often begins to decompose into an insoluble polymer during the manufacturing process, which is why it seemed impossible for a long time to make pure, bioactive R-alpha lipoic acid available as a food supplement. However, in 2002, the American company GeroNova finally succeeded in producing a stabilised R-alpha lipoic acid in the form of sodium R-lipoate with the patented active ingredient BioEnhanced® Na-RALA. BioEnhanced® Na-RALA is 21 times more bioavailable than simple, unstabilised R-alpha lipoic acid, measured via maximum blood plasma concentration (Cmax) and barely contains any S-alpha lipoic acid. The sodium salt is also completely water-soluble, unlike the potassium salt (K-RALA), and therefore requires no excipients. In contrast to the production of R-alpha lipoic acid, the additional processing steps required for the production of BioEnhanced® Na-RALA also ensure particularly thorough purification, so that impurities in the final product are well below the legal maximum levels.
For capsule shells, we use patented, stomach-acid-resistant HPMC capsules (DR® Caps). We use environmentally friendly amber glass for the packaging of this product.
