“Life isn’t perfect but your hair can be!”

When Ayushi read this quote, she was thrown off guard. She has been losing a lot of her hair strands, every single day. Initially, she let it go thinking it might be the season of hair fall. But this wasn’t the same case with her colleagues. And there she knew, something was wrong.

Recently she overheard Saloni, one of her colleagues whose voluminous hair she herself admires, sharing about biotin supplements. Now, this quote further intrigued her to search about biotin because of the connection it has with hair. 

Like Ayushi, if you are struggling with hair loss, worry no more. Here we bring to you a friendly biotin guide to answer all your questions right from ‘what is biotin’ to ‘when to take biotin supplements’. Let’s get started and first have a close look at what biotin is!

What is Biotin?

As you already know, vitamins are those substances that are required by your body to grow and develop normally. Biotin is one such vitamin that belongs to the family of B-vitamins.

Also known as Vitamin B7 or beauty vitamin, biotin is popularly used worldwide to treat various nutritional deficiencies. 

It is not unknown to you how lack of nutrition can result in underperformance by your body organs. It will in fact, negatively impact the operations of your body.

Hence, to avoid such a situation, biotin comes into the picture. It helps your body break down larger macronutrients to derive smaller nutrients. 

The concept is similar to the age-old advice to eat in smaller bites. It not only aids your body to easily pass those bites through the food pipe but also helps your body to efficiently derive the required nutrients.

These smaller units of nutrients broken down by biotin are then absorbed into the blood and sent to all your body organs for utilisation. 

Biotin plays three crucial roles inside your body:

• Gluconeogenesis: This process involves the production of glucose. You already know how significant glucose is for your body to make energy. What biotin does is, it initiates this extremely important process that involves the synthesis of glucose.

• Amino acid breakdown: Before your body uses amino acids (derived from food) for different processes, it is broken down into smaller units called protein. One such essential amino acid called leucine requires biotin to ensure this process runs smoothly. 

• Fatty acid synthesis: Biotin is also important for the synthesis of fatty acids. Fats are primarily used by your body to store extra energy that can be used later. Enzymes that are dependent on biotin break down fats into fatty acids that are later absorbed by the blood in case body organs require energy. Therefore, your body needs biotin for the production of these fatty acids.   

What are the causes of biotin deficiency?

Biotin is also crucial for your hair, skin and nails. 

Keratin is a basic protein that makes the structure of all three (hair, skin and nails). Biotin actually stimulates production of keratin and improves its biostructure. So any problem you face with skin, hair or nails, your saviour will be biotin! 

Now, is the time we answer who needs biotin and what is the right time to think about biotin.

To save you from the trouble, here’s an exhaustive list of individuals who are extremely likely to develop biotin deficiency: 

• Those who are a fitness enthusiast and regularly go gyming
• People who eat raw egg whites (This might surprise you but it’s true. It happens because of a binding factor called AVIDIN that binds to biotin and prevents your gut from absorbing it)
• People who have a gut disease
• People who are on parenteral intravenous feeding (In parenteral feeding, all the nutrients such as carbohydrates, proteins, lipids and sugar are passed on to one's body through a needle, into a vein.) 
• People who are on anti-seizure medication 
• People with prolonged use of antibiotics and other long-term medications

All these people mentioned above are at a high risk of becoming biotin deficient. Those who are on anti-seizure medications or have been using antibiotics for a long time, they might already be biotin deficient because these drugs and medications decrease the absorption of biotin by your gut. 

If you fall in any of the above categories, it is crucial that you supplement your body adequately for already present or anticipated biotin deficiency. 

What are the symptoms of biotin deficiency?

In case of deficiency, your body never fails to give away symptoms. 

Following are some of the noticeable symptoms of biotin deficiency that you must watch out for:

• Hair loss
• Brittle nails
• Dry scaly skin and irritation
• Thinning and splitting of hair
• Cracks at the corner of your mouth
• Swollen tongue or magenta-coloured tongue
• Dry eyes
• Glucose dysfunction
• High blood sugar levels
• Muscular pain and cramps
• Numbness and tingling sensations in your hands, feet or legs due to nerve diseases
• Loss of appetite
• Digestive problems
• Fatigue and chronic lack of energy
• Insomnia
• Depression

Daily dose of biotin 

Recommended Daily Allowance or RDA is a standard dose of vitamins or minerals based on a person’s age, sex and health status. 

According to the National Institute of Health, the daily requirement of biotin is as follows: 

• An infant requires 5 to 6 mcg of biotin.
• Children who are less than 12 years of age require 10 to 20 mcg of biotin in their diet.
• A teen requires 25 mcg of biotin in their diet.
• An adult requires 30 mcg of biotin in their diet.
• Pregnant and breast-feeding females require a little more, about 30-35 mcg of biotin in their diet.

Click here in case you want to refer to the complete fact sheet given by NIH. 

How to boost your biotin levels?

Though bacteria in your gut produce biotin, it's able to produce it in only minute quantities. Thereby, arises a massive need for you to boost your biotin levels. 

There are two ways to go about it: 

Biotin-rich diet

All you have to do is add rich in biotin food items to your diets. They may be vegetarian or non-vegetarian in nature. 

Following is the list of food items that replenish biotin inadequacy and boost your biotin levels:

• Meats especially kidney and liver meats are abundant sources of biotin
• Egg yolk
• Cheese 
• Soybeans
• Nuts and peanuts
• Cauliflower
• Other green leafy vegetables 
• Mushrooms
• Yeasts
• Bananas

• 
  Consume biotin builders or supplements

Since major sources of biotin are meats and egg yolk, for vegan and vegetarian diet followers, biotin supplements come in handy. They stimulate keratin production which has likely gone down in those individuals who are taking a poor diet or are suffering from medical conditions.

Increased keratin will significantly reduce their hair fall, brittle nails and tissue breakdown. 

Why do you need Biotin Supplements?

As you already know your body can only store fat-soluble vitamins like Vitamin A, D and K. Since biotin or Vitamin B7 is a water-soluble vitamin, your body cannot store it. It gets dissolved in water and is carried away to your body tissues. 

This is where the need arises to fulfil the required levels of biotin on the outside. 

Another major problem is that despite the crucial role biotin plays, people don’t come to know about its role and functioning until they face issues like hair thinning or brittle nails. 

Biotin is that knight in shining armour for your hair, nails and skin which you shouldn’t lose in any case. 

If your body is facing biotin deficiency, you have to supplement the needs. Otherwise, exposure to any kind of chemicals, bacteria and pollution will hamper your skin. Your hair. As well as your nails.  

Therefore, you need to replace biotin by a healthy and high-purity biotin supplement. 

How to use Biotin Supplements?

Today, you have a choice on how you want to take supplements inside your body.

For healthier hair, younger-looking skin and strong nails, biotin supplements are available in various forms:

1. The most prominent way to take natural biotin supplements is in the form of tablets.
2. It is also available in capsule form. 
3. Instead of pills, you can also add biotin to your daily diet in liquid form.

It is totally up to you to choose and decide the method you prefer for taking the benefits of biotin supplement to your body.  

High potency biotin supplement

GoYNG has simplified the task for you. They bring to you Biotin Hair Vitamin Tablets specifically curated for people who want healthy and fuller hair, better nail health and glowing skin. 

To serve the purpose, they have sourced high purity biotin from its natural home and captured it in 60 tablets of 500 mg biotin each. These biotin vitamin tablets are manufactured right here in India with strict quality control. 

Having adhered to the high standards of the FDA, they have done all the hard work for you. Bring home the myriad benefits to your hair, skin and nails with this nutrition-enriched biotin superfood. Read all about it here.

Final Thoughts 

Biotin is a special vitamin for your skin, hair and nails. In order to keep their health in check, adequate amounts of biotin are required by your body.

Since biotin is a water-soluble vitamin, it becomes even more important for you to replace and regularize them more often than not. Take a daily supplement in case you are not receiving enough biotin through your diet. 

Are you ready to step into healthy living with biotin? 

We hope this blog has helped you find answers on why and when to take biotin supplements. Do mention in the comments if you have any unanswered questions about biotin and its health efficacy. Our team will be happy to take them up!

FAQs

• How do I improve my hair growth?

It can be irritating to find unhealthy hair with no growth patterns. Here is how you can turn the tables in your favour:

• Reduce the use of heat equipment in your hair such as blow dryers and hot curlers
• Go easy on your shampoo and look out for mild and no chemicals
• Regularly massage your scalp
• Boost vitamins intake especially biotin. You can do it through supplements and a balanced diet

• What does biotin do to your hair?

Biotin or vitamin B7 is an essential hair vitamin that stimulates your hair follicles and encourages their healthy growth. Trust the repairing abilities of biotin on frizzy and unhealthy hair!

• What are the natural sources of biotin? 

The natural sources of biotin include meats, egg yolk, cheese, mushrooms, legumes, nuts, bananas, peanuts and green leafy vegetables. You must add these biotin-rich foods to your diet for healthy hair growth, better nail health and radiant-looking skin.

• Which fruit contains biotin?

The following fruits are rich in biotin:

• Kiwi
• Avocados
• Blueberries
• Blackberries
• Pomegranate 
• Grapes

• How much biotin should you take per day?

NIH recommends 10 to 20 mcg of biotin for children who are less than 12 years of age and about 30 mcg of biotin for adults. Check the complete factsheet here. 

• What are the serious side effects of biotin tablets?

There are some common side effects you can see after using biotin supplements. The possible side effects of biotin tablets could be:

• Acne
• Skin rash
• Upset stomach

•  Who should not take biotin?

Individuals who are allergic to biotin should not take it. In fact, biotin is not recommended for those with kidney disease and those who have had stomach surgery. They must talk to their healthcare provider for close supervision as doses will be different in this case.

• Is it good to take biotin every day?

Yes, it is relatively safe to take biotin every day as it is a water-soluble vitamin. Excess biotin is simply sent out of your body when you urinate. 

• Does biotin cause weight gain?

No, biotin does not cause weight gain. It, in fact, works in the digestive system to break down macronutrients into small quantities and efficiently oversees the process of converting food into energy.   

• Is biotin worth taking?

Yes, biotin is worth taking! Even NIH has advised about 30 mcg of biotin in the diet of an adult. Being a water-soluble vitamin, your body easily passes extra biotin out when you urinate. 

• Which is the best biotin supplement in India to take?

GoYNG has formulated the best biotin supplement in India known as Biotin Hair Vitamin Tablets. It is an advanced formula of natural biotin which adheres to the quality standard of FDI. It is a hair superfood that makes hair stronger from the roots and significantly improves hair volume. 

• What is the best time to take biotin?

When it comes to biotin supplements, time does not matter. You can have it either in the morning or in the evening. You can even take one tablet each both in the morning and at night.  

• How long does it take biotin to work on hair?

A minimum of 3-4 months are recommended to see the results in your hair growth cycle.