Biotin is a B vitamin that is essential for healthy hair, which is largely made up of a protein called keratin. Your body does not store this water-soluble vitamin, which helps in metabolizing protein building blocks called amino acids. Thus, biotin needs to be ingested regularly. Biotin can be found naturally in many foods, including nuts, cooked egg yolks, brewer's yeast, legumes, bananas and mushrooms. People who want to enhance hair growth also can utilize biotin supplements. Biotin sometimes is referred to as "vitamin H," according to the University of Maryland Medical Center.
Step 1
Take 30 mcg biotin daily if you are older than 19. The recommended amount is the same for pregnant women, but nursing females should take 35 mcg daily, advises UMMC. Standard preparations come in 10, 50 and 100 mcg tablets, so you will have to take three of the 10 mcg pills, plus another half pill if you are nursing. Take 25 mcg a day if you are a teen, and 20 mcg daily if you are age 9 to 13. Check with a doctor for children younger than 9.
Step 2
Take a B-complex supplement along with your biotin supplement. Either ensure that the additional supplement does not include biotin, or choose one that incorporates your needed amount of biotin into its formula and skip the plain biotin tablets. Biotin is most effective when it is combined with other B vitamins, advises the Vitamins and Health Supplements Guide. Ensure you take 1.1 mg of thiamin and riboflavin, which are especially important B vitamins for hair, advises Harvard Medical School. Also take in vitamin C as well as iron to boost effectiveness.
Step 3
Increase your biotin intake under a doctor's guidance if you are taking antibiotics long term or anticonvulsants, which deplete biotin levels in the body. Avoid consuming raw egg whites. These contain a protein that is called Avidin. Avidin interferes with your body's ability to absorb biotin. Also avoid taking lipoic acid supplements at the same time as biotin. Biotin and lipoic acid have similar structures so they compete for uptake in the body, advises Adriane Fugh-Berman's "The 5-Minute Herb and Dietary Supplement Consult."
Tips and Warnings
- Food processing often destroys biotin. If you choose to gain biotin via diet rather than supplementation, use less processed versions of the foods that contain this nutrient.
Things You'll Need
- 10 mcg biotin supplement
- B-complex supplement
- Vitamin C
- Iron
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