Biotin – Consumer

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What is biotin and what does it do?

Biotin is a B-vitamin found in many foods. Biotin helps turn the carbohydrates, fats, and proteins in the food you eat into the energy you need.

How much biotin do I need?

The amount of biotin you need each day depends on your age. Average daily recommended amounts are listed below in micrograms (mcg).

What foods provide biotin?

Many foods contain some biotin. You can get recommended amounts of biotin by eating a variety of foods, including the following:

• Meat, fish, eggs, and organ meats (such as liver)
• Seeds and nuts
• Certain vegetables (such as sweet potatoes, spinach, and broccoli)

What kinds of biotin dietary supplements are available?

Biotin is found in some multivitamin/multimineral supplements, in B-complex supplements, and in supplements containing only biotin.

Am I getting enough biotin?

Most people get enough biotin from the foods they eat. However, certain groups of people are more likely than others to have trouble getting enough biotin:

• People with a rare genetic disorder called “biotinidase deficiency”
• People with alcohol dependence
• Pregnant and breastfeeding women

What happens if I don’t get enough biotin?

Biotin deficiency is very rare in the United States. Biotin deficiency can cause thinning hair and loss of body hair; a rash around the eyes, nose, mouth, and anal area; pinkeye; high levels of acid in the blood and urine; seizures; skin infection; brittle nails; and nervous system disorders. Symptoms of biotin deficiency in infants include weak muscle tone, sluggishness, and delayed development.

What are some effects of biotin on health?

Scientists are studying biotin to understand how it affects health. Here is an example of what this research has shown.

Hair, nail, and skin health
Dietary supplements that contain biotin are often promoted to improve the health of your hair, skin, and nails, but there is little scientific evidence to support these claims. In a few small studies, some people with thin and brittle nails who took high doses of biotin had harder nails. Doctors have also reported that in a few cases, high doses of biotin have improved a rare hair disorder in children and skin rash in infants. More research is needed before biotin supplements can be recommended for any of these conditions.

Can biotin be harmful?

Biotin has not been shown to cause any harm. However, supplements that contain biotin above recommended amounts may cause false results in some lab tests, including those that measure levels of certain hormones, like thyroid hormone.

Does biotin interact with medications or other dietary supplements?

Yes, some medications you take may affect your biotin levels, and biotin may interact with certain medications. For example, treatment for at least 1 year with antiseizure medications (used to treat epilepsy) can significantly lower biotin levels.

Tell your doctor, pharmacist, and other health care providers about any dietary supplements and prescription or over-the-counter medicines you take. They can tell you if the dietary supplements might interact with your medicines or laboratory tests, or if the medicines might interfere with how your body absorbs, uses, or breaks down nutrients such as biotin.

Biotin and healthful eating

People should get most of their nutrients from food and beverages, according to the federal government’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Foods contain vitamins, minerals, dietary fiber and other components that benefit health. In some cases, fortified foods and dietary supplements are useful when it is not possible to meet needs for one or more nutrients (for example, during specific life stages such as pregnancy). For more information about building a healthy dietary pattern, see the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s MyPlate.

Where can I find out more about biotin?

• For general information about biotin:
  • Office of Dietary Supplements Health Professional Fact Sheet on Biotin

• For more information on food sources of biotin:
  • Office of Dietary Supplements Health Professional Fact Sheet on Biotin

• For more advice on choosing dietary supplements:
  • Office of Dietary Supplements Frequently Asked Questions: Which brand(s) of dietary supplements should I purchase?

• For information about building a healthy dietary pattern:
  • MyPlate
  • Dietary Guidelines for Americans

Disclaimer

This fact sheet by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) provides information that should not take the place of medical advice. We encourage you to talk to your health care providers (doctor, registered dietitian, pharmacist, etc.) about your interest in, questions about, or use of dietary supplements and what may be best for your overall health. Any mention in this publication of a specific product or service, or recommendation from an organization or professional society, does not represent an endorsement by ODS of that product, service, or expert advice.

Updated:
January 15, 2021
History of changes to this fact sheet

The Top 10 Biotin-Rich Foods

Both plant- and animal-based foods can provide dietary biotin. Foods high in biotin can include egg yolks and sweet potatoes.

Biotin is a B vitamin that helps your body convert food into energy.

Also called vitamin H or vitamin B7, it’s important for eye, hair, skin, and brain function. It may also support liver function (1, 2).

Biotin is a water-soluble vitamin, which means that your body doesn’t store it. As a result, you need to consume it regularly to maintain adequate levels (3).

Biotin deficiency is so rare that there isn’t enough evidence to establish a Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) or Estimated Average Requirement (EAR) for it. However, the Daily Value (DV) for biotin is typically around 30 mcg per day (4).

While biotin is available as a supplement, most people can get all they need by eating a varied diet.

Here are the top 10 biotin-rich foods.

Eggs are full of B vitamins, protein, iron, and phosphorus. The yolk is an especially rich source of biotin (5).

A whole, cooked egg (50 grams) provides approximately 10 mcg of biotin, or approximately 33% of the DV (4).

You should always cook eggs fully, both to reduce your risk of Salmonella poisoning and improve biotin absorption. Egg whites contain a protein called avidin, which can interfere with biotin absorption if eaten raw (4, 6).

Eggs can be hard-boiled, scrambled, or used to make baked goods like muffins or waffles.

SUMMARY

Cooked whole eggs are a good source of biotin due to the yolk, which is rich in several B vitamins.

Legumes like peas, beans, and lentils are high in protein, fiber, and numerous micronutrients. Some of the richest sources of biotin in this category are peanuts and soybeans (7).

A 1-ounce (28-gram) serving of roasted peanuts contains just under 5 mcg of biotin, or 17% of the DV (8).

One study on the biotin content of popular Japanese foods found 19.3 mcg of biotin — 64% of the DV — in a 3/4-cup (100-gram) serving of whole soybeans (9).

Legumes are typically boiled and used as a base for entrées and salads or incorporated into stir-fries or baked dishes.

SUMMARY

Legumes, especially peanuts and soybeans, are a good source of biotin. They’re also high in protein, fiber, and other vitamins and minerals.

Nuts and seeds are a good source of fiber, unsaturated fat, and protein. Most also provide biotin, but the amount tends to vary by type (10).

A 1/4-cup (20-gram) serving of roasted sunflower seeds offers 2.6 mcg of biotin, or 10% of the DV, while 1/4 cup (30 grams) of roasted almonds contains 1.5 mcg, or 5% of the DV (4).

Nuts and seeds can be enjoyed raw, tossed into salads, mixed into pasta dishes and stir-fries, or blended into homemade nut and seed butters.

SUMMARY

Eating a variety of nuts and seeds is a good way to raise your biotin intake. Sunflower seeds and almonds are especially good sources.

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Certain organ meats, especially liver, are high in biotin. This makes sense biologically, as most of your body’s biotin is stored in your liver.

Just 3 ounces (75 grams) of cooked beef liver provides nearly 31 mcg of biotin, or 103% of the DV (4).

Cooked chicken liver is an even richer source, packing 138 mcg per 3-ounce (75-gram) serving — a whopping 460% of the DV (8).

Some people enjoy liver fried with onions, minced into homemade burger patties, or chopped and cooked to top pasta dishes.

SUMMARY

While liver isn’t one of the most popular foods, it’s one of the best sources of biotin. A standard serving of chicken and beef liver each provide over 100% of the DV.

Sweet potatoes are full of vitamins, minerals, fiber, and carotenoid antioxidants. They’re also one of the best vegetable sources of biotin (8, 11).

A 1/2-cup (125-gram) serving of cooked sweet potatoes contains 2.4 mcg of biotin, or 8% of the DV (4).

Sweet potatoes can be baked or microwaved until soft. You can also peel, boil, and mash them or add them to homemade veggie burger patties.

SUMMARY

Sweet potatoes are a great vegetable source of biotin, with 1/2 cup (125 grams), cooked, meeting 8% of the DV.

Mushrooms are nutrient-rich fungi that offer several health benefits, including ample biotin. In fact, their high biotin content protects them from parasites and predators in the wild (12, 13).

Approximately 20 caps (120 grams) of canned button mushrooms contain 2.6 mcg of biotin, which is nearly 10% of the DV (8).

A 1-cup (70-gram) serving of chopped, fresh button mushrooms boasts 5.6 mcg, or 19% of the DV (8).

Canned mushrooms work well over noodles, atop homemade pizzas, and in sauces and gravies, while fresh mushrooms can also be stuffed and baked, sautéed, or added to salads.

SUMMARY

Canned and fresh mushrooms are a good source of biotin and easy to add to numerous dishes.

Bananas are one of the most popular fruits worldwide. They’re packed with fiber, carbs, and micronutrients like B vitamins, copper, and potassium (14).

One small banana (105 grams) also provides approximately 0.2 mcg of biotin, or 1% of the DV (4, 8).

They’re most often eaten on their own, but you can also add them to smoothies, spread nut butter on them, or freeze them to make nondairy ice cream.

SUMMARY

Bananas are a sweet, nutritious, and popular snack, and they also provide small amounts of biotin.

Broccoli is one of the most nutrient-dense vegetables, as it’s full of fiber, calcium, and vitamins A and C (15).

It’s also a good source of biotin. Just 1/2 cup (45 gram) of raw, chopped broccoli contains 0.4 mcg, or 1% of the DV (4, 8).

You can enjoy it raw with hummus or dip, steamed, roasted with olive oil and seasoning, blended into soups, or sautéed and added to pastas and casseroles.

SUMMARY

Broccoli provides small amounts of biotin and is rich in several other nutrients, including calcium and vitamins A and C.

Both nutritional yeast and brewer’s yeast provide biotin, but specific amounts vary by brand.

Brewer’s yeast, also called dry active yeast, is used to brew beer and leaven bread. Conversely, nutritional yeast is an inactive yeast that’s often used to make nondairy cheese.

Nutritional yeast may contain up to 21 mcg of biotin, or 69% of the DV, per 2 tablespoons (16 grams) (16).

On the other hand, a standard 2.25-teaspoon (7-gram) packet of active dry yeast used for baking provides 1.4 mcg of biotin, or 5% of the DV (8).

SUMMARY

Nutritional and active dry yeast, which are used as a food flavoring and in baking, respectively, are both good sources of biotin.

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Avocados are best known as a good source of folate and unsaturated fats, but they’re also rich in biotin (17).

A medium avocado (200 grams) contains at least 1.85 mcg of biotin, or 6% of the DV (8).

Avocados can be eaten raw, mashed onto toast, stirred into guacamole, and sliced to top salads, taco soup, and burritos.

SUMMARY

Avocados, which are commonly used to make guacamole, are particularly rich in healthy fats, as well as biotin.

Biotin is a water-soluble B vitamin that your body needs to obtain from food. Deficiency is rare and can be avoided by eating biotin-rich foods.

Some of the best sources of biotin include legumes, egg yolks, organ meats, nuts, seeds, mushrooms, avocados, sweet potatoes, and yeast.

Biotin supplements are available as well, but most people can get all of the biotin they need by eating a balanced diet.

Biotin (vitamin H)

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Chemical structure and properties

Biotin was isolated in 1935 from egg yolk. Vitamin got its name from the Greek. bios is life because of its ability to stimulate the growth of yeast and bacteria.

The vitamin H molecule consists of imidazole and tetrahydrothiophene rings, the side chain is represented by valeric acid.

The N1-imidazole ring is the site of carboxylation. By binding to a bicarbonate ion (HCO3-), biotin becomes a coenzyme called carboxybiotin.

Biotin is able to form with avidin, a chicken egg protein glycoprotein, a strong complex that cannot be broken down by digestive enzymes. Therefore, with the private use of raw eggs, the absorption of biotin present in food stops. The ability of avidin and biotin molecules to specifically bind to each other is used in some purification methods in biotechnology.

Hypovitaminosis

Biotin hypovitaminosis is manifested by dermatitis, oily seborrhea, alopecia (focal alopecia), drowsiness, fatigue. Muscle pain is often noted.

Congenital disorders of biotin metabolism

The most common disorders associated with a defect in propionyl-CoA carboxylase and β-methylcrotonoyl-CoA carboxylase.

With a congenital defect of propionyl-CoA carboxylase, ketoacidosis is noted in the first weeks of a child’s life, attacks of which are provoked by feeding (food protein). Attacks are accompanied by frequent vomiting, muscle weakness, hypotension, drowsiness, dehydration and in most cases end in death. In a biochemical study, an increased concentration of propionic acid is detected in the blood, and long-chain ketones are detected in the urine. Excessive accumulation of propionic acid in tissues leads to the fact that it is included in the biosynthesis of fatty acids (instead of acetyl-CoA), while abnormal fatty acids with an odd number of carbon atoms are formed. Accumulating in brain phospholipids, such fatty acids cause severe neurological disorders.

Inhibition of the activity of β-crotonoyl-CoA-carboxylase leads to a violation of the breakdown of leucine at the stage of carboxylation of β-methylcrotonyl-CoA. With this congenital disorder, metabolic ketoacidosis develops. The disease manifests itself with indomitable vomiting, which does not stop after the patient switches to a low-protein diet. The condition improves after taking large doses of biotin.

Hypervitaminosis

Not described.

Food sources

Biotin is synthesized by the human intestinal microflora. This largely satisfies the body’s need for biotin. Taking antibiotics and treatment with cytostatics can lead to a hypovitaminosis state.

Vitamin H is rich in legumes, as well as cauliflower, mushrooms; from products of animal origin – liver, kidneys, milk, egg yolk.

Literature
T.S. Morozkina, A.G. Moiseyonok Vitamins. A short guide for doctors and students of medical, pharmaceutical and biological specialties.

Included in the following preparations:

Vitamin B7 – Biotin (Vitamin H, Vitamin B7, Biotin, Vitamin H)

Method of determination
HPLC-MS/MS (high performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry).

Test material
Blood plasma (EDTA)

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Synonyms : Coenzyme R; Coenzyme R.

B7; Coenzyme R.

Brief characteristics of the analyte Vitamin B7 – biotin

Biotin – also known as vitamin B7 and vitamin H – a water-soluble vitamin of group B, is a cofactor of the five most important carboxylases involved in the synthesis and catabolism of fatty acids, amino acid metabolism, gluconeogenesis. The addition of biotin to these carboxylases is catalyzed by the enzyme Holocarboxylase synthetase (HLCS), while the enzyme biotinidase releases biotin from the breakdown products of carboxylase, making it available for a new cycle.

Good food sources of biotin are organ meats (liver, kidneys), eggs, yeast, milk. Grains, fruits, most vegetables, and meats contain less. Significant amounts of biotin can be synthesized by the human intestinal microflora.

Under what conditions can vitamin B7 deficiency develop in the body

Dietary deficiency of vitamin B7 and genetic defects in the enzymes involved in its metabolism (biotinidase, less commonly HLCS) can lead to a deficiency of biotin in the body. Lack of this vitamin in the body is observed infrequently.

Documented clinical cases have been described with long-term consumption of raw egg whites (which contain the biotin-binding protein avidin) or with almost exclusively parenteral nutrition without biotin supplementation, and in individuals with congenital disorders of its metabolism. Nutritional deficiency of the vitamin can be aggravated by the state of the microflora that produces biotin, for example, against the background of the use of antibiotics. A significant decrease in circulating biotin is noted in chronic alcoholism, in patients with achlorhydria, in old age, in people taking anticonvulsants. Mutations in the biotinidase gene disrupt the recycling (reuse) of biotin and lead to its increased loss in the urine (in the form complexed with peptides). Mutations of the HLCS gene with a decrease in the activity of this enzyme and metabolic disorders due to carboxylase deficiency with characteristic acidemia are rare.

How vitamin B7 deficiency can manifest itself in the body

Clinical manifestations of apparent biotin deficiency include anorexia, nausea, vomiting; glossitis; dermatitis; conjunctivitis; alopecia; ataxia; hypotension; ketolactacidosis/organic aciduria; convulsions; skin infections; thinning hair; rashes on the skin around the eyes, nose and mouth; impaired immune function; developmental delays in children.

When vitamin B7 preparations are used

Biotin is used in clinical practice to treat its deficiency in genetic disorders, high-dose supplements of this vitamin can be used in progressive multiple sclerosis (the mechanisms of its beneficial action in this pathology are still being established). Side effects of taking biotin in high doses (as observed in patients with biotinidase deficiency) are not described.

Biotin is gaining popularity and is being heavily promoted for its claimed effects on hair health and nail growth. Although the beneficial effect of this vitamin on hair and nails has indeed been established for individuals with an acquired or congenital deficiency of this vitamin, there is not enough evidence of its benefit for healthy people with a normal biotin status in the body. Persons using biotin preparations should be aware that pharmacological doses of biotin can interfere and distort the results of various laboratory immunochemical studies (for example, in enzyme immunoassay – ELISA) using the biotin-streptavidin system in reagents (can be used to determine hormones, markers of various diseases ).