Quote from: learningtolive on May 12, 2013, 02:26:49 PM
I have decided to start using biotin (which is a b vitamin) to try and grow my hair faster.  My hair is currently in a mid range phase and I'm getting annoyed by how long it's taking to get long.  I have heard plenty of anecdotal evidence that claims biotin can help speed hair growth, but I don't know if that's just the impact of effective marketing tricking people into thinking it works.  I imagine any effects it has is much smaller than the typical hype.  Still, I want to give it a shot.  So, has anyone tried it?  If so, do you feel it worked? 

Thanks.

I'm taking biotin. It's really impossible to tell if it's helping, but it is an important vitamin for hair health, so it should theoretically help.

Quote from: learningtolive on May 12, 2013, 06:21:37 PM
Well, I am a vegetarian and there is no way I can eat meat.  The thought of doing so again would be too difficult for me as it has been years.  Is there any particular reason why the protein source matters?  I can't see why it would be too problematic as long as I also make sure my other b vitamin levels are sufficient.  Well, I will try anyway.  I just bought some 5,000 mcg pills, so maybe I will try taking two a day.

It doesn't matter. You can get complete proteins from plant sources.

Quote from: kariann330 on May 12, 2013, 05:22:09 PM
I have found since it helps your body process protein more efficiently sadly if your vegetarian or vegan the plant based proteins won't be enough. If your  normal person and eat meat, take the biotin either before or after meals and you will see results.

How are vegetarians not "normal"?

I used to..

But since I've become a vegetarian I dont really need to supplement a lot. I would say it def helps with hair health!

Noted earlier in the topic, I was taking a supplement (with no visible results), so I have moved over to finasteride.

yes i had a really ugly cut a couple years ago from too much damage from flat ironing, so i cut my hair two inches past my chin, by april it was two inches past my shoulders now it's at boob length, but you have to take it with other vitamins as well. i took biotin 10,000 MCG, vitamin e, and msm, use those and your hair will grow quick take it with a meal and drink plenty over water, be warned though, biotin will wreak havoc on your skin

I've been taking biotin for about a month and a half, it does help a bit and I've been using Mane and Tail shampoo and conditioner when i shower. So my results for almost 2 months so far my hair looks like a shaggy Beatles haircut

Quote from: Jane's Sweet Refrain on January 18, 2014, 04:20:46 PM
Hi, I was just researching and wanted to post the (so-far) success. I haven't had increased body hair yet. But if I do, that can be zapped or shaved (unless it's really bad). I didn't quite think my little success was worth a new thread, although the original post about hair regrowth certainly is!

Actually, your post may be really helpful to others, including me.  When you say your hair began to shed, do you mean it started falling out?  If so, how much.  I'm just wondering if it was a hormonal reaction or something else?  Do you use any products or heat tools on your hair?  I notice that I need to be careful with my hair straightener because it really drys my hair out if I don't use a heat tammer.  I've never had an issue with shedding or balding, but biotin did help me grow my existing hair at a faster rate.  It would be interesting if biotin would also help prevent hair loss as well.

Quote from: Jamie D on January 18, 2014, 10:25:51 PM
Noted earlier in the topic, I was taking a supplement (with no visible results), so I have moved over to finasteride.

Yeah, biotin only works subtly.  I feel that my hair grew out faster because of it, but it was far from a major boost.  In any case, it helped my hair grow from a little over my hair to about shoulder length, so it may help with enough time.   

Quote from: latoya fox on January 18, 2014, 10:41:55 PM
yes i had a really ugly cut a couple years ago from too much damage from flat ironing, so i cut my hair two inches past my chin, by april it was two inches past my shoulders now it's at boob length, but you have to take it with other vitamins as well. i took biotin 10,000 MCG, vitamin e, and msm, use those and your hair will grow quick take it with a meal and drink plenty over water, be warned though, biotin will wreak havoc on your skin

I've never had issues with my skin, but that does seem to be a common issue.  And yea flat irnoing can really hurt your hair.  Because I use one almost daily, I need to use heat sprays and frequently deep condition my hair.

Quote from: Kelly-087 on January 18, 2014, 06:06:22 PM
I used to..

But since I've become a vegetarian I dont really need to supplement a lot. I would say it def helps with hair health!

I'm a vegetarian too.  In my case, I feel I need to take vitamins because of deficiency, but I also try to avoid dairy as well (whenever possible though I'm far from vegan). 

Quote from: Thylacin on January 18, 2014, 05:51:16 PM
How are vegetarians not "normal"?

I think she just meant non-vegetarians which is usually the norm.

Quote from: Thylacin on January 18, 2014, 05:48:58 PM
It doesn't matter. You can get complete proteins from plant sources.

Yeah, I pretty much live on soy, but I still feel deficient at times.  Sometimes I really miss meat and it's tough when everyone in my family is eating meat around me.  However, I really can't go back to it and am glad to suffer through the temptation. 

Quote from: Darlig Ulv on January 19, 2014, 12:32:43 AM
I've been taking biotin for about a month and a half, it does help a bit and I've been using Mane and Tail shampoo and conditioner when i shower. So my results for almost 2 months so far my hair looks like a shaggy Beatles haircut

Aww, I remember being in that shaggy phase.  It was irritating but it didn't last forever.   A month and a half is still early, so it's great that you are already seeing positive results.  It's a good sign.   

Quote from: learningtolive on January 19, 2014, 10:47:17 AM
Actually, your post may be really helpful to others, including me.  When you say your hair began to shed, do you mean it started falling out?  If so, how much.  I'm just wondering if it was a hormonal reaction or something else?  Do you use any products or heat tools on your hair?  I notice that I need to be careful with my hair straightener because it really drys my hair out if I don't use a heat tammer.  I've never had an issue with shedding or balding, but biotin did help me grow my existing hair at a faster rate.  It would be interesting if biotin would also help prevent hair loss as well.

Aww. Thanks. You may find this unbelievable, but I was counting hairs that I was losing almost every day. A clean brush, a clean bathtub, a clean floor. I was losing between 50-70 hairs from the process of shampoo and conditioning, applying aerated mousse and blow drying. The hair was NOT breaking. It was falling out. I do use a flat-iron from time to time, but not every day. Hair loss is down to averaging under 20 now, which I think is normal for a healthy scalp. Same regiment. Same clean tub, brush, and floor. Some days it's a little more. Some days around 10. The telltale sign is the floor after blow drying. There used to be at least 15 every day. Now 2-4. Some days, none. It may not be the biotin. The supplement contains other ingredients. And I'm not concerned so much with growing new hair, just keeping what I have. Still, I imagine a slower loss rate will eventually mean a thickening as dormant hair cycles back.

I don't believe in snake oils or miracle cures. I don't want to give false hope to anyone. I don't even know if I was moving toward baldness. But I was losing my hair, and now I'm not. Hormones and thyroid and liver were all normal. I would gladly accept an alternative explanation, but I can't come up with one.

Quote from: Jane's Sweet Refrain on January 19, 2014, 12:32:43 PM
Aww. Thanks. You may find this unbelievable, but I was counting hairs that I was losing almost every day. A clean brush, a clean bathtub, a clean floor. I was losing between 50-70 hairs from the process of shampoo and conditioning, applying aerated mousse and blow drying. The hair was NOT breaking. It was falling out. I do use a flat-iron from time to time, but not every day. Hair loss is down to averaging under 20 now, which I think is normal for a healthy scalp. Same regiment. Same clean tub, brush, and floor. Some days it's a little more. Some days around 10. The telltale sign is the floor after blow drying. There used to be at least 15 every day. Now 2-4. Some days, none. It may not be the biotin. The supplement contains other ingredients. And I'm not concerned so much with growing new hair, just keeping what I have. Still, I imagine a slower loss rate will eventually mean a thickening as dormant hair cycles back.

I don't believe in snake oils or miracle cures. I don't want to give false hope to anyone. I don't even know if I was moving toward baldness. But I was losing my hair, and now I'm not. Hormones and thyroid and liver were all normal. I would gladly accept an alternative explanation, but I can't come up with one.

Wow, that sounds like a lot of hair to lose.  Have you gone to your doctor since that point?  You can never be too careful.  It might be good to make sure that everything is okay.  In any case, I'm really glad that it has let up and that you've been seeing improvement.  Whether it's the biotin or not, it's good that you found something that has helped. 

Quote from: learningtolive on January 19, 2014, 05:16:02 PM
Wow, that sounds like a lot of hair to lose.  Have you gone to your doctor since that point?  You can never be too careful.  It might be good to make sure that everything is okay.  In any case, I'm really glad that it has let up and that you've been seeing improvement.  Whether it's the biotin or not, it's good that you found something that has helped.

That's so sweet of you to be concerned. I DID go to the Dr., who seemed unworried. I went through the tests that are the most likely culprits. I can't say for sure, but given my response to the supplement, I'd guess it was a vitamin and mineral deficiency. I'm not sure in what ways HRT and second puberty might tax our systems. I eat well, but that may not be enough.

Oh, and from what I gather from reading, it's normal to lose more than 100 hairs per day. If new hair was taking it's place, I might have held steady, but I wanted to be pro-active. 

I have been taking 15,000 mg of a B-complex supplement for going on 3 years and I wish I could comment on hair growth, my reason for taking it is because of anemia and to support red blood cell production. I also take an iron, vit D, and omega 3,6,9 supplement.

Quote from: learningtolive on January 19, 2014, 10:47:17 AM
Aww, I remember being in that shaggy phase.  It was irritating but it didn't last forever.   A month and a half is still early, so it's great that you are already seeing positive results.  It's a good sign.

Last time I took biotin and used Mane and Tail to grow my hair out I had shoulder length hair in 6 months. Hopefully I can pull that off again and let it grow longer this time.

Quote from: Darlig Ulv on January 20, 2014, 04:04:06 AM
Last time I took biotin and used Mane and Tail to grow my hair out I had shoulder length hair in 6 months. Hopefully I can pull that off again and let it grow longer this time.

Ooo oh? Tell me more about mane & tail?
Isn't that for horses?

Only thing stopping me from using biotin is potentially the facial hair growth. How has been impacted, if at all, for any of you? Don't want to lose the good work HRT did on me, in that regard. It's a tough conundrum for me, really, since I want to have nice hair down to my shoulder blades. Been growing it out for like 4-5 years now, never even got past the bottom of my (short) neck.

Quote from: GorJess on January 20, 2014, 07:40:30 AM
Only thing stopping me from using biotin is potentially the facial hair growth. How has been impacted, if at all, for any of you? Don't want to lose the good work HRT did on me, in that regard. It's a tough conundrum for me, really, since I want to have nice hair down to my shoulder blades. Been growing it out for like 4-5 years now, never even got past the bottom of my (short) neck.

Not yet. But I'm of the opinion that hair (within reason) can be removed more easily than it can be regrown. It takes money, but it's a lot cheaper than a hair transplant. Pick your poison, as they say.

I'm now hijacking this thread to ask about Mane and Tail. Any one tried it? And with what success?