What is biotin used for?

Also known as vitamin H, biotin is one of the B complex vitamins that help the body convert food into energy. The word “biotin” comes from the ancient Greek word “biotos,” which means “life” or “sustenance.” B vitamins, and specifically biotin, help keep your skin, hair, eyes, liver, and nervous system healthy.

What are the contraindications for biotin?

There are no evident contraindications to taking this vitamin. Biotin is a safe and nontoxic vitamin that the body excretes when in excess. There are no known herbal interactions with biotin.

How do I know if I need biotin?

Signs of biotin deficiency include skin rashes, hair loss, and brittle nails [10,13]. Therefore, biotin supplements are often promoted for hair, skin, and nail health [16,23,24].

What is the test for biotin?

If your doctor suspects you’re not getting enough B-7, a blood test can measure the level in your blood. Your doctor may order additional blood and lab tests to check other levels. They can use these numbers to either confirm or rule out a biotin deficiency.

What is biotin deficiency?

Nutritional Biotin Deficiency. Biotin deficiency is usually characterized by alopecia and scaly erythematous dermatitis distributed around the body orifices, acidemia, aciduria, hearing and vision problems, and developmental delay in children. Biotin deficiency may also cause paresthesias, myalgias, and mild depression …

Does biotin affect blood pressure medication?

We observed that long-term administration of biotin decreased systolic blood pressure in the SHRSP strain; also, a single dose of biotin immediately decreased systolic blood pressure in this strain.

What happens when you have too much biotin?

Biotin supplements can cause problems if you take too much. Side effects can include skin rashes, digestive upset, problems with insulin release, and kidney problems. As with any supplement, the safety of long-term or high-dose use isn’t known.

Is biotin approved by FDA?

On November 28, 2017, the FDA issued a Safety Communication, The FDA Warns that Biotin May Interfere with Lab Tests , that discussed concerns with biotin interference in certain laboratory tests.

Does biotin affect iron levels?

Biotin in supplements can also affect tests for heart failure, pregnancy, cancer, and iron-deficiency anemia. Experts say the problem is not new. “In the lab community, people have known about this for a long time,” said Danni Li, PhD, director of clinical chemistry at the University of Minnesota Medical Center.