Lipoic Acid

Lipoic acid is a very powerful antioxidant that has the unusual advantage of being both water and fat soluble and is an important cofactor in mitochondrial dehydrogenases. It has a great deal of anti-inflammatory activity,which is one of the reasons that Dr. Nicholas Perricone has credited lipoic acid as one of the major antioxidants in skin care. Studies have shown the ease with which lipoic acid is able to penetrate the skin, after which it converts into its active byproduct dihydrolipoic acid (DHLA) [28, 29].

Topical application of 3% lipoic acid has demonstrated its ability to decrease UVB-induced erythema, which demonstrates its photoprotective and anti-inflammatory properties. Also, a 12 -week study demonstrated that using a topical cream containing 5% alpha-lipoic acid was quite effective in treating signs of photoaging [30, 31].