Hair and skin vitamin - sounds promising!

Guten tag nutrinutters!

A few years back, I remember that I used to joke around with friends about chocolate being great for me because it had vitamin H, this nonexistent vitamin that I made up to justify my chocolate addiction. It turns out that there is such a thing as vitamin H! Granted, chocolate is not a source of it at all :)

Never heard of it? The reason for that might be because it is mainly known as Biotin or vitamin B7! It is said that the name vitamin H comes from the German words hair and skin "Haar und Haut", since deficiency of biotin affects the skin and hair.


Like the previous B vitamins, biotin will help in the conversion of the nutrients coming from foods into energy for our cells. This vitamin is a coenzyme to some important reactions including the making of fats, in particular fatty acids. It does this because its presence is required for the functioning of an enzyme called acetyl CoA-carboxylase, which is responsible for putting together the building blocks that make up the fat in your body.

Now you might be thinking "this vitamin is THE enemy of my life!!". I however have to protest and act as biotin's defense attorney. Fat production is very important for your skin cells since cells need the correct amount of fat in their membranes to work properly. Skin cells themselves die very quickly needing to be replaced fast!More importantly, they are in contact with the environment and work as a selective barrier. When there is a biotin deficiency, your skin cells are one of the first ones to be impacted by it. Vitamin B7 is not only important for healthy skin but it is also said to help improve thin, splitting or brittle nails and hair!

Biotin when combined with chromium might also help improve blood sugar control by decreasing insulin resistance and nerve symptoms that accompany type 2 diabetes. Now pay close attention my Nutrinutters, you must NEVER take any supplement on your own without speaking to a physician and dietitian about it. Many supplements have strong interactions with meds so you have to be very careful.

What are some good sources of Vitamin H

A few foods are good sources of biotin including eggs (specially egg yolk), yeast, nuts and beans.
Here are some numbers for you:
1/4 cup of peanuts has about 26 micrograms (mcg) of Biotin
1/4 cup of almonds has about 14 mcg of Biotin
1 egg has about 8 mcg of Biotin

However, there's something unique about this vitamin when it comes to ways of obtaining some. It just so happens that the bacteria in your gut produces biotin! So here we have yet another reason among many others as to why we should keep our gut microflora very healthy! (we'll discuss probiotics and prebiotics soon!)

Do I still need a lot of B7 if my gut bacteria produces some already?

As you can see, this vitamin has very important functions. Therefore, even though we produce some on our own, the recommendation for adult males and females is 30 micrograms per day. Pregnant women have the same recommendation, breastfeeding on the other hand should have 35 micrograms per day.
Biotin is not known to be toxic even in higher doses, which is why there is no tolerable upper limit intake for this vitamin.

The Nutrient Chain

This vitamin, like many others, believes in team work! Deficiency of B5 or pantothenic acid (we discussed this one a few weeks back) can contribute to biotin deficiency since they both participate in many metabolic situations.

Well, this concludes another vitamin from the B-files! We have a couple more to go before setting sail in different seas...

Before I go, I just wanted to say a quick hi to the international Nutrinutters in Brazil, China, Ireland, Norway, Russia, Ukraine and United Kingdom!!!!

Have a great week everyone!!!

XOXO

-The Nutrinut-