Biotin Side Effects You Need To Know Before Taking

Reshma suffers from constant thinning of hair due to winter dryness and dandruff. She was upset with her degrading hair quality. Her aunt suggested that she start using biotin as it is a great supplement for good hair health. She started taking biotin supplements. Her hair health grew better, but she started to have digestive problems. Later, she learned that it was happening due to biotin tablets side effects.

Before you start your biotin regime for hair growth, you should check for biotin supplement side effects.

What is Biotin?

A biotin is a form of vitamin B famous for its effects on hair. It is believed that biotin intake stimulates hair growth and reverses hair loss. It is highly popular and recommended for growth. Though there are some biotin hair growth side effects also seen, it is also important to note that biotin deficiency can lead to thinning of hair. 

Biotin can be taken in the form of a pill or tablet. Though biotin tablets, side effects are common. But the good news is that some foods are also rich in biotin, which can save you from biotin supplement side effects and biotin tablets side effects.

5 Best Foods That Are Rich in Biotin

Taking in biotin-rich food in your diet can give you a natural and healthy source of biotin and can also save you from biotin supplement side effects and biotin tablets side effects. Following is the list of biotin-rich food-

• Egg yolk
• Oats
• Wheat germ
• Spinach
• White mushroom

Intake of this biotin-rich food in your daily diet can be very beneficial for your hair health, but one biotin side effect of these foods can be that it causes indigestion and rashes if taken more than required.

Positive Side Effects of Biotin

Side effects don’t need to be always negative. Biotin is Vitamin B-7 which is a fatty acid and glucose. It is an important source for creating energy and maintaining bodily functions. This vitamin is needed to keep your body healthy.

Biotin is known to have effective results in treating certain medical conditions. These are counted as positive biotin side effects. Following are the medical conditions that can be treated by intake of biotin-

• Hypoglycemia
• Hyperlipidemia
• Glucose control in obese patients with diabetes

These are the positive biotin side effects.

Negative Side Effects of Biotin

Biotin is easily available in the market in the form of supplements but be well aware that biotin supplement side effects are very much real. Take in biotin supplements only if prescribed by a medical specialist. Tell your doctor other medicines that you are taking as biotin does not react well if taken with certain other chemicals. 

As of now, there are no adverse biotin side effects, but too much intake of biotin can cause skin rashes, digestive problems, problems with insulin release, and kidney problems. Intake of biotin through a doctor’s prescription or normal dietary intake doesn’t show biotin side effects.

The deficiency of biotin has symptoms like hair loss or hair thinning, high cholesterol, skin rash, heart problems, etc.

Effects of Biotin Overdose

 Anything more than the recommended dosage is too much. Similarly, when biotin is taken more than what is prescribed or required by the body, it can also show side effects. 

Some cases show negative biotin hair growth side effects when too much biotin is consumed. People intake excess biotin in supplements and tablets, thinking it will help them better their hair health, but too much of anything can leave adverse effects on the body. The majority of people get enough biotin through a normal diet. You need not take supplements or tablets until your doctor recommends, or else you will face biotin hair growth side effects.

A high level of biotin in the body can also produce false positives in laboratory tests for thyroid disease.

Health Benefits of Biotin

Now that we have extensively discussed the biotin hair growth side effects and biotin side effects in general let’s look at some of the benefits of biotin intake.

Biotin is an essential vitamin that is required to maintain the body’s overall health. Your body needs this micronutrient to function properly. The biotin consumed in the form of food that we eat is enough to reach the required need of our body.

Intake of biotin can help fight biotin deficiency. However, some supplements claim that they provide additional health benefits, but they are not supported by scientific evidence or research.

Companies that manufacture shampoo, hair oils, hair mask, hair cream, or basically hair care products claim that biotin thickens hair, increase fullness and add shine. However, there is only a handful of studies to back this statement.

Conclusion

Biotin is famous for its benefits in improving hair health. It is claimed by many that biotin makes hair thicker, fuller, and shinier, but there is less evidence to support this claim. A biotin is a form of vitamin B and hence is important for the body. Excess intake of biotin can show both positive and negative side effects. One gets enough biotin through normal daily diets; hence it is recommended not to take biotin supplements or tablets until prescribed by a doctor.