Starting my biotin journey

[ZenaZoo]

As of today I will be taking biotin supplement for a month to see if there are any changed to my growth rate.
Its not a super high strength ad I'm a bit curious if a small dose will work as well as other people. each tablet is 300. the bottle states i can take up to 4 a day. I'm starting with 2. if i don't get any really bad side effects i will up to 4. What is the maximum anyone has taken on here?
I currently have a ton of braid waves and its up for work so I will take a starting pic after a shower when my hair is wet and straight.
I will take weekly photos to see if there is any change
i usually get around 1/2 to 3/4's of an inch a month.
At the moment my hair is "ok"
2aii ish. Veggie dyed red with blue dip dye. More of a half and half but yeah.
My hair is currently an inch is so off bcl.
I'm aiming to cut half of the dip dye once my demarcation line reaches waist again. Currently BSL/mid back ish.
currently I wash my hair every 2-3 days. Usually CO but every so often I use a teeny coin size shampoo on my scalp. I use various conditioners, at the moment my favourite is herbal essences mask in a small purple pot.... Smells like Parma violets (sweets) and my hair likes it.

Sound like a recipe for disaster or could this work? shudder:

Thanks all!

[clioariane]

I think it takes longer than a month to actually see a difference. I'd aim for 3 and see how it goes from there! :)

[Firefox7275]

Have you considered simply overhauling your diet, especially focussing on biotin rich foods? Do you eat plenty of nutrient dense foods like oily fish, other seafood especially molluscs, nuts, seeds, cocoa, organ meats such as liver? Micronutrients work synergistically and in opposition, the body needs a balance of them all for health not megadoses of one, you can do more harm than good by indiscriminately supplementing. What do you call 'really bad side effects', early stage of kidney failure?
http://igorsbelltower.blogspot.co.uk/2011/02/infamous-biotin-rant.html

[ZenaZoo]

I do eat a fair amount of fish. I can't really afford to eat any different to I am already. It's not particularly unhealthy but it could be better. I have a few bottles of this so maybe 3 months worth yeah. I've read reviews and watched YouTube and a lot of people say they can notice a difference in a month which us why I thought if try it. I'm not after a fast fix just testing the water so to speak.

[Steven's Bride]

I am also taking biotin for the first time. So I look forward to seeing how well it works for both of us. Good luck!

[Steven's Bride]

Oh, sorry for the second post, but I thought of something. The one thing I've noticed is that it is very worthwhile to ensure that you are drinking the correct amount of water. If I don't, I start to notice a light breakout on my skin. That's my cue to notice that I haven,t drunk enough water, so I start to make sure I do.

The water is good for you and your hair anyway. But that's what I've noticed so far. With proper hydration, I don't get skin breakouts.

[ZenaZoo]

Yes I've read a lot about the hydration issues. I try to drink more when I remember. Sometimes I find myself drinking too much and have to pee every half hour. It's hard to find the balance.

[Steven's Bride]

Yes I've read a lot about the hydration issues. I try to drink more when I remember. Sometimes I find myself drinking too much and have to pee every half hour. It's hard to find the balance.

I know! And I don't really like to drink plain water, so I've been drinking flavored waters (the no sugar kind). I do enjoy coffee, but that is dehydrating. I know it's better to drink more water than I have been, so that's been a positive change already - to be attentive to that need.

[LAG93]

I am taking fish oils along with a multivitamin and a hair skin nails vitamin. Which include biotin in them. When I don't take the fish oils I really don't notice much difference in my hair but when I do, along with the other vitamins, my hair is so shiny looking, I don't know about growth I haven't really measured much but my nails are growing like crazy! They are also stronger, so I'm assuming the same is happening to my hair it is just more noticeable with my nails. I don't eat fish or seafood, I only eat chicken, duck, turkey, sometimes deli ham. I'm just a picky eater! Also I'm a college student...so spaghetti, rice..cheap food! I got a lot of my vitamins for free

[Steven's Bride]

Hi LAG93! How long have you been taking the vitamins now?
I know what you mean about diet - I don't eat any seafood or fish either.
I never found a kind that I liked enough to be able to afford.

[LAG93]

Well I am not religious about taking them everyday...but I've been pretty good keeping up for about a year!

[ZenaZoo]

It's been nearly 2 months now. I'm not sure about my hair as of yet as I've done a small s&d plus a few micro trims these past months. But my nails are growing like crazy. I sometimes bite my nails as a habit from when I was younger but not it's almost every few days I notice a difference. I like to paint my toe nails and it's becoming a weekly thing as most if the paint has grown away. Skin not so oily and no break outs so far. The idd spot but nothing out if the ordinary. My diet isn't great but I have noticed a difference. I'll be re-stocking on biotin soon and try another couple months. No trimming from now until new year so I'll take a photo and see the difference.
Hope everyone else is having fun!

[ZenaZoo]

It's been nearly 2 months now. I'm not sure about my hair as of yet as I've done a small s&d plus a few micro trims these past months. But my nails are growing like crazy. I sometimes bite my nails as a habit from when I was younger but not it's almost every few days I notice a difference. I like to paint my toe nails and it's becoming a weekly thing as most if the paint has grown away. Skin not so oily and no break outs so far. The idd spot but nothing out if the ordinary. My diet isn't great but I have noticed a difference. I'll be re-stocking on biotin soon and try another couple months. No trimming from now until new year so I'll take a photo and see the difference.
Hope everyone else is having fun!

[Tini'sNewHair]

Following your updates now. You should deffinatly stop trimming so often (unless you are trying to cut off damaged hair)... Im thinking of giving it a go as well, my hair is BSL and i want it to be at waist so bad. Ive just started taking multivitamins and vitamin C today. I will get some fish oil to and i eat fruit everyday but not so much veggies... So yeah... I might use your post to do my updates to :) I will get my biotin after i do some research so maybe in a few days :p

[ZenaZoo]

Yeah my ends are real easily damaged. I think from previous colour and how I hold my haur up throughout the day. I'm about an inch from bcl and have been for a while so I'm guessing what I'm trimming in growing the same. Which is good cause it's been a good few inches over a few months. Since changing my daily updo's slightly I'm stopping dusting my ends and seeing how we go. I'm not sure what my goal is maybe tbl or classic. I'll see what's comfortable.

[bunzfan]

Be very very careful taking biotin i got very scary depression with it and within weeks of stopping it it finished.

[ZenaZoo]

Be very very careful taking biotin i got very scary depression with it and within weeks of stopping it it finished.

I'm quite low the majority of the time so I can't really tell.
I do feel worse the last few weeks but along has happened recently. Always tired so I couldn't tell if its this or not. I may stop for a while and see how things go. Thanks =)

[Enrapture]

Don't think that taking more biotin will make a difference.Our bodies can only take limited biotin dose in one day and taking more will just waste the pills. I am taking quarter of my 5 mg biotin everyday :)

[ositarosita]

I take biotin regularly not just for the hair but it's amazing for my skin and helps my body to metabolise what I actually eat which helps with maintaining my weight.. but it does take longer than a month to see a difference (unless you are deficient which is highly unlikely)

[tetisheri72]

I've been taking biotin for 6 months now, and I really do see a difference, especially in my nails. I asked my husband, and he says that my hair is growing faster. He's more objective than I am on it. I never think it's growing faster. He's now taking it too, because he's decided that he's going to grow his hair out too.

[Long_hair_bear]

I take a multi vitamin with biotin in it. :)

[Northerner]

I am taking biotin because I am growing out a pixie cut and it's in an akward stage. I've been taking 5mg per day for a month, but do not see much impact yet. I took biotin in a multivitamin a year ago, 2 mg per day for 3 months. Nails started growing faster after 1.5 months, hair after 2-2.5 months.

[Ashflower89]

I took 10,000mcg biotin once a day for the past two months, then read an interesting article linked to me from somewhere on this forum and realized that was WAY overkill. I'll link the blog article at the bottom, you can tell why that's too much in the first paragraph. I ditched them and bought some mouth-dissolving 1,000mcg biotin instead, and have been taking that once a day for the past two weeks. I'm not sure if there is any growth, and if there is, it's just too subtle. Growing out and measuring a multi-layered pixie is difficult. =P

Igor's Biotin Rant (http://igorsbelltower.blogspot.com/p/infamous-biotin-rant.html)

[Silverbrumby]

I've taken biotin for two years. Great for skin, nails. Hair doesn't grow any faster but there is more on my head. Very dense hair at front now. No increase in terminal length and no help in reducing shedding.

[Northerner]

Well, that's good news re: more growth. I lost a lot of hair... How much are you taking?


I've taken biotin for two years. Great for skin, nails. Hair doesn't grow any faster but there is more on my head. Very dense hair at front now. No increase in terminal length and no help in reducing shedding.