« Drink black tea | Main | What is Chamomile? »
What is biotin?
By admin | August 10, 2007
Origin of the word comes from the greek word bios which means life. It is essential water-soluble B vitamin. It is very important for some enzymes to work properly. With biotin deficiency there might be serious complications that can occur on skin, intestinal tract and nervous system. Also, high-blood ammonia, different metabolic complications and very low sugar in blood may occur. Death could be possible in very serious cases, but there have been no clear cases reported.
This vitamin is found on most of the foods, so deficiency is rare. Human bodies can also recycle biotin that had already been used. Also, daily recommendations are small (only 300 miligrams daily).
The U.S. Food and Nutrition Board of the National Academy of Science’s Institute of Medicine recommends a daily Adequate Intake (AI) of 30 micrograms in adults 19 years and older. During breastfeeding, a daily AI of 35 micrograms is recommended. Most healthy non-pregnant individuals with regular diets obtain these amounts of biotin through dietary consumption.
Biotin is also available in capsules and as tablets. Dosages vary. There is disagreement among experts about the proper dose. In adults, intramuscular (injected into the muscle) doses as low as 150-300 micrograms daily have been suggested. Higher doses between 10-40 milligrams of biotin daily have also been recommended (given by mouth, injected into the muscle, or injected into the veins).
Synonyms such as biocytin, biotinidase, biotin cadaverine are also used.
Topics: Nutrition, Supplements | No Comments »
