If you are healthy, your body makes enough alpha-lipoic acid. It is also found in red meat, organ meats (such as liver), and yeast, particularly brewer's yeast.
R-LA occurs naturally in foods covalently bound to lysine in proteins (lipoyllysine). Although LA is found in a wide variety of foods from plant and animal sources, quantitative information on the LA or lipoyllysine content of food is limited and published databases are lacking. Animal tissues that are rich in lipoyllysine (~1-3 mcg/g dry wt) include kidney, heart, and liver, while vegetables that are rich in lipoyllysine include spinach and broccoli (90). Somewhat lower amounts of lipoyllysine (~0.5 mcg/g dry wt) have been measured in tomatoes, peas, and Brussels sprouts.
Alpha-lipoic acid is an antioxidant (a substance that may protect against cell damage). Studies have examined the effects of alpha-lipoic acid supplements on complications of diabetes.
For example:
A 2011 clinical trial of 467 participants with type 2 diabetes found that supplements of 600 milligrams of alpha-lipoic acid daily did not prevent diabetic macular edema, an eye condition that causes blurred vision.
Alpha-lipoic acid and vitamin E supplements taken separately or in combination did not improve cholesterol levels or the body’s response to insulin in a 2011 clinical trial of 102 people with type 2 diabetes.
Safety
High doses of alpha-lipoic acid supplements can cause gastrointestinal problems.
https://nccih.nih.gov/health/diabetes/supplements#hed5
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