Gestational diabetes is a form of glucose intolerance that is uniquely diagnosed in pregnancy – because it often leads to insulin resistance in the future, mothers who have it are at a greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes in the future.
 
While there are multiple possible pathogenic origins of this form of diabetes, it’s thought that oxidative stress plays a role, along with other types of pregnancy complications such as preeclampsia. In a preliminary clinical trial, published in the International Journal of Reproductive Biomedicine, it was shown that the antioxidant Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA) may have a beneficial effect on women suffering from gestational diabetes.
 
The present study enrolled 60 women who had gestational diabetes, breaking them into two groups where one group took 100 mg of ALA and the other took a matching placebo, with both groups on a matching diet plan in order to control their blood glucose levels. Researchers measured blood concentrations of ALA, hemoglobin A1C, fasting blood sugar, HDL and LDL cholesterol, triglycerides, and total cholesterol, as well as lipid ratios.
 
After 8 weeks of treatment, there were no significant changes in weight, systolic blood pressure, or BMI in either group. However, the researchers noted that maternal circulating values of fasting blood sugar, HDL cholesterol, triglyceride-glucose index, triglycerides, triglyceride/HDL ratio, triglycerides/total cholesterol ratio, AIP (atherogenic index of plasma), and TBARS (a measure of lipid peroxidation) all significantly decreased in the ALA group compared to the baseline. There were also marginal decreases in the hemoglobin A1C as well.
 
While the changes in LDL and HDL cholesterol were not significantly different between the ALA and placebo group, all of the other significant changes experienced by the ALA group were significantly greater than any changes experienced in the placebo group.
 
“The results of the current study in women with GDM showed a significant decrease in the maternal circulating values of TyG index, TG, TG/HDL, AIP, and TBARS in the ALA group compared to the placebo group at the end of the intervention. More studies are required to evaluate the potential effects of ALA on the reduction of birth defects in women suffering from [gestational diabetes mellitus],” the authors of the study concluded.