Is it safe to take Biotin Supplements to try an... - Thyroid UK

Thyroid UK

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Is it safe to take Biotin Supplements to try and promote hair growth & reduce thinning.

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Hi! Can anyone in the know about vits & supplements advise or give their thoughts on taking Biotin supplements please... My hairstylist has recommended me taking it to help with my hair thinning, but I have read it can alter your blood test results, so I am presuming rightly or wrongly, that it can change your thyroid levels.

My latest blood test results showed that I was mid range in the normal ranges for T4, but over normal range for FT3 by a small amount (6 being the top of normal range, mine being 6.3). My TSH, according to the doctor was undetectable being 0.001. I use NDT, self medicated.

I am not sure if the higher T3 is affecting my hair growth, and a Rheumatologist has told me that, and the undetectable TSH is affecting my bone density so has recommended me to cut back, which I am nervous to do. I am currently in the menopause which is probably a factor with the bone thinning, and maybe the hair growth too? I am using a Vit D spray (1000 IU) as recommended by the Rheumatologist, also awaiting treatment for bone thinning. I also take a multivitamin minus iodine most days, and just started taking iron (Ferrous Fumarate) 14mg. The Biotin supplement contains 12000 ug.

I am desperate to try and stop the hair thinning.

I've also heard that Oestrogen in the form of HRT can help with hair thinning, but I have also read it can cause it, so I am reluctant to go down that route.

Any thoughts, much appreciated!!

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12 Replies

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greygoose3 years ago

No, biotin doesn't affect thyroid levels themselves. It's just the testing method. Some labs use biotin in the testing process, so if you have too much biotin in your blood, it can give you false highs or false lows in the results. But, if you stop it one week before the blood draw, that shouldn't be a problem.

But, whether or not it will help with your hair is another matter entirely. Depends what is causing the hair-loss. If you're losing your hair because of low thyroid hormones, biotin won't do much for it. Or, if you're taking too much. There are many many reasons for hair loss, and you have to correct the root cause before it will grow again. For example, low iron. Have you had your ferritin tested?

a Rheumatologist has told me that it is affecting my bone density so has recommended me to cut back,

How does he know it's affecting your bone density? Did he do a scan or something? And how does he know it's the T3? I would be wary of that opinion, if I were you. Did he test your vit D to make sure that's optimal? Low vit D would be very bad for bone density. Could be he's just prejudiced against T3, like so many doctors.

I also take a multivitamin minus iodine most days

With or without iodine, multi-vits are a very bad idea for many reasons. Mainly because all those different supplements shouldn't all be taken together like that, a lot of them tend to cancel each other out: vit B12 and vit C, for example. Calcium and iron. Plus, iron will block the absorption of just about everything else. Poor quality ingredients, the wrong form of the supplement, not enough to sort out a dificiency, etc. etc. etc. I could go on forever. But, to sum it all up, you might just as well throw your money directly down the drain as buy a multi-vit.

Far better to get your vit D, vit B12, folate and ferritin tested, and supplement according to the results, taking only what you need.

• in reply togreygoose3 years ago

Thank you for the helpful information😊. I have recently been diagnosed with early onset osteoporosis and vitamin D is part of the treatment, so I am taking D3 now. He did a lot of blood tests to try & find the root cause of the osteoporosis including vitamin D, thyroid blood count, gluten allergy etc. He was pretty concerned about the so called undetectable TSH level at 0.001 and higher T3 level. I'm wondering if I should try and raise my TSH & cut back slightly to put the T3 in the normal range. I've read that TSH should be between 2-5 which makes mine off the chart. I thought I was doing well on my meds until the hair thinning & possibly the bone thinning if thyroid is a contributory factor.

greygoose• in reply to3 years ago

Are you also taking the Vit D cofactors: magnesium and vit K2-MK7?

TSH has nothing to do with bones. It is a chemical messenger from the pituitary to the thyroid, to tell it to make more hormone. A euthyroid (normal) TSH - that is to say the TSH of someone with no thyroid problems - has a TSH of around 1, never over 2 - that means the thyroid is struggling to make enough hormone - and when it reaches 3 you are technically hypo. So, imagine how ill you would be if you had to have your TSH between 2 and 5! That is just totally unrealistic.

Many, many hypos need their TSH to be below-range/suppressed, because that's where it is when they're taking enough thyroid hormone to make them well. You cannot compare euthyroid levels with those of a hypo on exogenous hormone. Unfortunately, that is something that doctors just don't understand.

Your TSH is suppressed because you don't need it anymore. TSH has just two jobs:

* to stimulate the thyroid to make more hormone - as you are hypo, on exogenous hormone, with an FT3 top of the range, you don't need it for that - your thyroid isn't even working anymore.

* to stimulate conversion of T4 to T3 - you are taking NDT, so you are not totally reliant on conversion for your T3 supple, so you don't need TSH for that anymore, either. So, why would you want to raise your TSH? You could only do that by lowering your dose - quite sustantially, probably - and risk making yourself ill. The amount by which your FT3 is over-range is negligable, so is it really worth it? Ranges are just rough guides, not rigid rules set in stone.

3 years ago

Thank you, really appreciate you explaining things properly. I have a hard time convincing my doctors my TSH is nothing to worry about. I got the TSH level information from the Dr Wentz site on hair loss. I have only had the magnesium and vit k in the multivitamin.

CG123453 years ago

I took Biotin for a few years as my hair never felt like it grew people a certain level. Now it’s as long and healthy as it’s been since I was 18 (13 years ago). Just make sure to stop taking it a week before any thyroid blood tests. You’ll know within 6 months or so if it’s helping or not if you’re willing to go trial and error.

Bhattinsami• in reply toCG123453 years ago

Which biotin you are taking ?

CG12345• in reply toBhattinsami3 years ago

Pure Encapsulations. I only use nutricuetical strength supplements - if you have access to the natural dispensary online they stock the more reputable brands. But it’s not cheap to take that option for all supplements

• in reply toCG123453 years ago

Thank you. I'm hoping the brand I've bought will help.

• in reply toBhattinsami3 years ago

Just a high potency, allergen free type from Amazon.

• in reply toCG123453 years ago

Thanks, that's good to hear you had success with Biotin. I'm hoping to find something to help so will try anything.

patwoon3 years ago

I started taking Thyromax from amazon and after a couple of months, saw a big difference in how much my hair fell out. It used to be a handful when I shampooed it now there's hardly any. 🙂

• in reply topatwoon3 years ago

Thanks, I'll look that up 🙂