By Danielle Dresden – December 2018
Reviewed by Zara Risoldi Cochrane, PharmD, MS, FASCP
Many people with multiple sclerosis (MS) use diet to help manage their symptoms. Many foods contain biotin, including brewer’s yeast, nuts, egg yolks, Swiss chard, liver, and many others.
One important group of vitamins are the B-vitamins, which help the body turn food into energy, support the nervous system, and maintain the skin, hair, eyes, and liver. They are vital during pregnancy.
People sometimes refer to biotin as vitamin B-7 or vitamin H. It is one of the B-complex vitamins and is essential for human health.
The United States Food and Nutrition Board has not set a recommended daily allowance (RDA) for biotin, but the board has established an adequate intake (AI) level of 30 micrograms (mcg) per day for adults.
In this article, we look at the possible benefits of biotin in the treatment of MS.
Function
Amongst other foods, biotin can be found in nuts.
Biotin is thought to help manage presentations of progressive MS due to supporting nerve cell metabolism.
MS develops when the immune system targets and damages myelin, a substance that covers and protects the nerve cells. Biotin activates key enzymes, helping the body to produce more myelin.
Enzymes are proteins that carry out crucial functions in the body.
Healthy levels of myelin allow nerve cells to communicate with each other more efficiently. This communication between the nerve cells may reduce the level of disability in people with MS.
Producing more myelin may also slow the progression of the disease.
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