Can biotin strengthen my brittle nails?
Biotin is a product that claims to be effective not only for hair loss, but also a useful compound when patients suffer from brittle nails. Let's put that claim to the test and see if there is scientific evidence to support this bold statement.
Biotin is an essential cofactor for many different reactions that occur in our body. Even if biotin deficiencies are quite rare, it is possible that those suffering from this disease may have problems with the hairline and nail beds, so it may be necessary to administer supplements. In our previous investigations, we have discovered that biotin for hair growth is a possible solution whenever a patient has an underlying biotin deficiency. It will not be an effective supplement for the treatment of hair loss if your biotin levels are normal. Even if universal biotin supplementation may not work for hair loss, that does not mean it's useless when it comes to brittle nails. Here, we will focus on the question "Can biotin strengthen my brittle nails?"
stk-hair,skin & nails gummies with Biotin (80)
What causes my brittle nails?
Brittle nails are a common occurrence in the population and are observed in approximately 20 percent of the world population. It is significantly more common in women than in men and although there are several claims on the Internet that biotin will be an efficient way to relieve brittle nails, the most likely risk factor that medicine has identified for brittle nails is due to the Dehydration
Onychodystrophy is the most formal name for this disease, and it can be caused by many different conditions, whether from infectious or non-infectious diseases. It can also appear as a sign of more serious systemic disorders. Therefore, you should make sure that your doctor thoroughly reviews it before you simply agree with biotin to treat your condition.
Another possible cause of your brittle nails comes from the medications you may be taking. The known side effects of medications such as anti-malarial drugs, arthritis remedies and anti-HIV drugs have common substances that can make the nails more fragile. The mechanism of why this happens is not well understood, but it is believed that the medications could cause a combination of inflammation, edema or even affect the maturation of the nail bed and manifest as the fragility of the nails.
This is much more than a simple problem of breaking a nail from time to time because studies show that people with fragile nails usually have a dramatically lower quality of life compared to healthy people. Simple activities like buttoning buttons, tying shoes and collecting small coins can be impossible tasks based on the stability of the nail bed. Patients are also predisposed to numerous opportunistic infections if their nails are not strong, so this may manifest as a serious condition.
Will Biotin make a difference?
The main question now is "can biotin strengthen my brittle nails?" Regardless of the underlying etiology. In a study conducted in Switzerland, this question was put to the test in a population of patients suffering from brittle nails. In the study, 44 patients were included, and 35 of them received biotin daily supplements for a period of 6 months to determine the long-term effect on the thickness of their nails. At the end of the study, 22 of the 35 patients (63 percent) showed clinical improvement, while the other 37 percent showed no difference in their symptoms at all. This result suggests that biotin may be useful when it comes to brittle nails, but it is not a resounding success that you would expect to see in this type of study.
In other research, the researchers determined that biotin might make a difference in some patients with respect to the thickness of the nails, but this depended to a large extent on whether the patients had an underlying biotin deficiency. This result is the same conclusion we reached when we investigated the effectiveness of biotin for hair growth. When a more systemic disease is causing brittle nails or if it is a side effect of medications, daily administration of biotin supplements will not help restore firm nails.
A more promising alternative that has emerged as a treatment option for brittle nails is known as hydroxypropyl chitosan (HPCH). This is a compound that creates a synthetic nail polish on the surface of the nails to increase stability and help the nails to regenerate.
hydroxypropyl chitosan (HPCH)
Hydroxypropyl Chitosan (HPCH) essentially creates a medical manicure to put it on more digestible terms. In an investigation to determine the effectiveness of this product, 44 women with brittle nails were analyzed and the researchers concluded that HPCH made a difference in 74 percent of the patients who used the product. Another impressive observation was that the more severe the damage to the nail bed, the more likely it was that HPCH could provide a therapeutic benefit.
When I try to find a treatment option for your brittle nails, my suggestion is to try something more definitive than biotin for your therapy. Even if it is marketed as a treatment for hair loss and as a brittle nail aid, the scientific data does not definitively endorse these claims unless it has an underlying biotin deficiency.