Biotin in Energy Production: Fueling the Body Efficiently
, by Sandesh Prasannakumar, 8 min reading time
The word Biotin, in the literal sense, means “life”. Biotin, also known as Vitamin H, is actually Vitamin B7 belonging to the Vitamin B Complex family. It is a water-soluble vitamin, which is mostly associated with improved hair growth, eyesight, or skin. If you’ve ever browsed the vitamin aisle, you’ve probably come across biotin supplements, often marketed for hair, skin, and nail health. However, there are bigger implications of biotin in energy production, metabolism, and the breakdown of nutrients in our body. It is the key component in the enzymes that break down carbs and fat in your body to provide it with the energy to operate in daily life. That is why it is also known in the research world as Coenzyme R.
Role of Biotin In Energy Production: Enzyme Action
Biotin is a coenzyme. It is one of the main compounds found in various gut enzymes that are responsible for better metabolism, which means it helps enzymes in your body to perform their functions.
Metabolising Carbohydrates
This vitamin is responsible for breaking carbohydrates into glucose, which is the main source of energy for the whole body. This occurs through a process catalysed by an enzyme known as pyruvate carboxylase. This enzyme is assisted by the presence of the biotin to convert one of its substrates, pyruvate – a breakdown product of carbohydrates – into another substance called oxaloacetate. Possibly the most critical of all the reactions in the glycolysis pathway, oxaloacetate then enters the citric acid cycle, also referred to as the Krebs cycle, which produces energy. Biotin is necessary for the conversion of carbohydrates into sources of energy, which means you will still have the strength to go through with your activities.
Breaking Down Fats
Fats are the other source of energy that is important to the human body. Biotin plays a role in the metabolism of fatty acids, and the body utilises the derived energy. It helps in the biosynthesis of essential fatty acids through its interaction with the enzyme acetyl-CoA carboxylase. This enzyme catalyses the conversion of acetyl-CoA (a molecule produced when fats are being utilised as a source of energy) into malonyl-CoA, which is useful in the formation of new fatty acids. These fatty acids are crucial in several body processes, such as the development of cell membranes and the synthesis of hormones. Also, biotin is involved in the metabolism of fats, and it ensures fats are efficiently burnt or utilised along with other energy-rich nutrients. This process is crucial, especially when exercising for a long time or when you are on a low-carb diet.
Utilising Proteins
Protein is the major structural unit of your body, and biotin aids in the metabolism of ‘protein.’ Thus, biotin helps to supply amino acids, which are the components of proteins and are necessary for energy supply and muscle repair.
Why Biotin is Essential for Energy
Biotin is not only a component of essential enzymes that break down different nutrients in your body but also a lead assistant. It reacts differently, with each enzyme responsible for each type of nutrient, and aids in the process of transforming them into the forms that your body can absorb easily.
Symptoms that Correspond with Biotin Deficiency
Usually, signs that indicate vitamin B7 deficiency are so subtle that they are mistaken as symptoms caused by other ailments. However, ignoring these symptoms can lead to graver problems:
- Hair thinning or clinical hair loss
- Brittle and soft nails
- Eczema or scaly skin rashes, especially on the face, eyes, nose, mouth, and anus
- High acid content in urine
- Recurring eye infections like conjunctivitis
- Chronic fatigue and lethargy
- Several neurological issues, such as hallucinations and seizures
- Abnormal sensations in limbs like frequent burning, tingling, prickling, numbing sensations in your legs
- Delay in growth and development
- Weak muscle tone, also known as hypotonia
- Sleep apnea
- Depression
- Biotin Deficiency Facies - Uneven distribution of fat on the face
The seizures and neurological problems are more severe symptoms that reveal themselves over a longer time. Children who are born with biotin deficiency, which is a rare possibility, can show autistic behaviour.
Getting Enough Biotin for Energy Production
Our daily biotin requirement is as low as 30 micrograms and can be found in many food groups. However, there are certain circumstances in which the biotin levels in your body might be affected.
Being on a prenatal diet can cause biotin deficiency. People who consume too many raw eggs can develop biotin deficiency since a protein called Avidin, found in egg white, binds itself tightly to vitamin B7 and doesn’t let it get absorbed by the body. Other nutritional imbalances due to long-term dieting can cause biotin deficiency. A well-balanced diet can reverse the effects.
Being on anti-seizure or anti-convulsive medication for a long period of time can cause biotin deficiency. Continuous intake of antibiotics also causes biotin deficiency because antibiotics, while attacking the bad bacteria, also attack the good bacteria in our metabolic pathways, killing the enzymes that help absorb biotin in our body. Chronic alcoholism can cause biotin deficiency by decreasing its levels at a cellular level.
Conclusion
Though often reduced to being identified as the beauty vitamin, biotin plays a major role in how energetic you feel. If you keep feeling lethargic without any evident reason for it, it is time to get your biotin levels checked. Usually counted among the group of eight Vitamin Bs, biotin essentially drives the enzymes in our stomach and large intestines that break down carbs, fats, and proteins into elements and compounds that are readily absorbed by our body, providing us with the life force needed to lead a healthy and energetic life.
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