Taking biotin supplements is safe for most people, but they have no proven effectiveness in improving the quality of nails, skin, and hair. This was reported by Health.
Adults need 30 micrograms of biotin, or vitamin B7, per day. Most people can get this amount from foods (liver, eggs, salmon, seeds, and almonds), but from 2000 to 2016, consumption of biotin supplements increased 28-fold in the United States alone. Some over-the-counter supplements contain a higher daily dose than recommended. However, experts note that this is rarely a cause for concern, even if the dose is thousands of times higher (some medications contain 10-20 thousand mcg of biotin).
Biotin helps the body convert food into energy. Its deficiency is associated with skin rashes, hair loss and brittle nails. However, studies on the benefits of biotin supplements have yielded conflicting results, and there is currently no reliable evidence of their effectiveness.
“I do not recommend that patients with hair loss take biotin regularly. “Most studies have not shown a benefit unless the person has a laboratory-confirmed biotin deficiency,” Anthony Rossi, MD, a dermatologist and surgeon at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, told Health.
However, some people may see benefits from taking biotin. If taken in excess, this substance will be excreted in the urine. However, nausea, gastrointestinal upset, difficulty sleeping, and dehydration may occur.
Additionally, taking too high a biotin supplement may affect the results of some laboratory tests, such as thyroid hormone and troponin levels.
Experts emphasized that biotin deficiency is rare and is especially seen in pregnant women, alcohol addiction, smokers, malnutrition, antibiotic use and inflammatory bowel disease.
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