You are sitting in your hair dresser’s chair, chatting with him about how you’ve noticed your hair starting to thin a little around your temples. You ask him for a care recommendation and he points you towards a couple of products and a supplement containing high levels of biotin. Of course! Why didn’t you think of that? Biotin, a B vitamin, is even called Vitamin H for “Haar und Haut” or “hair and skin” in German. It is well known as the nutrient to try when you are having issues with your hair, skin or nails but is this so-called common knowledge well-founded? Additionally, are there any dangers in taking a biotin supplement anyway if it is not? Let’s see.

In a literature review by the Icahn School of Medicine, it was noted that the recommended amount of daily Biotin intake ranges from about 30 to 70 mcg a day. Higher doses of Biotin caused lab results to reflect abnormal thyroid function normally associated with hyperthyroidism. That’s interesting, but what is considered a high dose? First, it is important to note that the recommended daily intake is in mcg, or micrograms and not mg or milligrams. For those less familiar with the metric system, a mcg is 1,000 times smaller than a milligram. So, the generic bottle of biotin you might pick up at the pharmacy often contains single-pill doses as high as 5 or even 10 milligrams. Depending on where you fall in the above daily recommended range, this means that a typical, over-the-counter dose of biotin is easily 150 to 300 times more than the recommended daily intake. Ok, that’s pretty high! Considering that according to the NIH (National Institutes of Health), most individuals require the lower end of the spectrum, or 30mcg, and 98% of healthy individuals gain this from their everyday diet, biotin supplements, even pure ones, seem to be at least, excessively redundant. Let’s dig a little deeper.

We should note that there are a few groups of people who are more commonly at risk for biotin inadequacy. One such group is individuals with Biotinidase deficiency, a rare disorder that prevents the body from releasing free biotin. This causes an overall biotin deficiency even when the individual is taking in normal amounts of biotin in their diet. This is a rare but serious disorder that is commonly screened for in the US at birth so the chances of an individual reaching adulthood without the development of serious neurological or cutaneous symptoms is unlikely. The second group mentioned by the NIH is comprised of those who chronically consume alcohol. Chronic alcohol consumption inhibits the absorption of biotin. However, even then, only about 15% of alcoholics are thought to suffer a measurable deficiency. The third group is made up of pregnant or breastfeeding women. About one third of pregnant or breastfeeding women suffer from a biotin deficiency though more research is needed to understand exactly why. If you don’t belong to one of these groups, it’s very likely that you get a more than adequate amount of biotin from your daily diet.

The NIH has also gone on to say that while biotin deficiency often results in hair loss, brittle nails and skin problems, there isn’t enough evidence to fully support the claim that taking biotin supplements actually helps mitigate these issues. There is some correlation between these issues and low biotin certainly, but we know that does not mean causation. In fact, in a review of the use of biotin for hair loss, researchers found that in the cases in which biotin caused any improvement, there was an intervening complication such as an inherited biotin deficiency or pathology. They found little evidence that biotin supports hair growth in otherwise healthy individuals.

Even so, what’s the harm if it might help? Simply put, the harm is considerable confusion in areas of our health where we absolutely need clarity! We already mentioned that taking biotin when you don’t need it can cause confusing lab results when it comes to thyroid complications but what does that mean? Biotin can, in fact, mimic Graves disease or even complicate a diagnosis of hypothyroidism by emulating the test results of someone with hyperthyroidism. The results will look like hyperthyroidism even though the individual is not presenting any of the other symptoms of hyperthyroidism. Hyperthyroidism is a relatively serious condition, especially if it goes untreated. In one case study, a man with hypothyroidism was taking biotin and presented on the lab results as someone with hyperthyroidism. Imagine if he’d gone as far as to get his thyroid gland removed as is sometimes the treatment for hyperthyroidism, only to find out that he was on the other end of the spectrum and needed his thyroid gland even more than most! This is just one scenario where biotin, a seemingly harmless supplement, could have severe consequences when taken unnecessarily. Biotin can similarly complicate cardiac related lab results, masking issues associated with an individual’s cardiac risk assessment, or even hiding the signs of a recent heart attack. So, if you or a loved one has heart issues or you are being assessed for cardiac issues, this is just one more area where biotin can cause detrimental confusion with serious consequences.

Bottom line: If you decide to take a biotin supplement for any reason, not only should you make sure that it is a third-party tested, pure supplement, but talk to your doctor and make sure it is something you specifically need in the first place. Taking it unnecessarily may result in health issues much more serious than a receding hairline.

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