Topic: Biotin
Biotin is the recommended natural supplement for nail and hair care and I started taking it awhile back with stunning results. My nails were immediately strengthened and my hair was a bit stronger as well (though this took longer to see than the nails). I was taking about 4,000 mcg per day, short of the advertised of 5,000 mcg a day, but much more than the average person would consume in a normal diet.
At first it caused a bit of upset stomach that would have been avoided by taking it with a meal. The other negative side effect was the one that caused me to stop using it - in sensitive folks it can cause breakouts. Now, what isn't clear to me is if it's the Biotin itself or the fillers/binders in the pill causing the breakouts. Biotin does not naturally appear as a hard, white substance and some have theorized that its the inactive ingredients used in putting the biotin in pill format that causes breakouts. Let's say that you take 5 pills a day or even 7. Vitamin B is water soluble, meaning that any excessive amounts are flushed out in urine. The fillers in the pills, however, do stay around and may be the reason for the breakouts.
Some physicians dismiss the need for biotin pills altogether claiming that the necessary amounts of Vitamin B we need come from a regular diet and Vitamin B pills are essentially wastes of money. I hardly have "a regular diet" though...
At any rate, I wanted to share my results and let you know but the postive effects I had as well as the negative side effects. If you want to try it, but find yourself senstive to fillers remember that Biotin is essentially Vitamin B7 which can also be found in straight Vitamin B tablets (less fillers) or general vitamin supplements, for example Centrium, but in far mcg's per pill. I'm trying to increase my Vitamin B naturally in the foods I eat: tuna, liver and bananas - I'll let you know how it goes.
