R-ala should help prevent lipids from being stored as bodyfat becuase it lowers insulin .... high insulin environment + fat = fat storage... I cant speak to the rest though
I take it sometimes as much as a half hour before a meal if I'm eating out. Nearly all my meals contain fat and it works real well. So far I've only used ALA and haven't tried the r-ALA. Never the less I see results.
No, fat is not a consideration in your meals for r-ALA use.
The absolute best time to take it seems to be 10 minutes prior to eating. However, you will not see any difference if you take it just prior to eating.