Which is better for hair growth biotin or folic acid? Can you take biotin and folic acid together?
We’ll answer all your questions.
Folic Acid for hair growth
Folic acid is a water-soluble type of B vitamin folate. It is also known as vitamin B-9.
Folate is a naturally occurring vitamin in food, and its synthetic form is called folic acid. Folic acid has been added to lots of food for decades now, such as flour, pasta, cereals, bread, crackers, and cookies are required by law in some countries to add folic acid.
Other foods that are high in natural folate are vegetables such as lettuce, broccoli, and spinach, fruits such as lemons, melons, and bananas, asparagus, okra, mushrooms, beans, meats such as kidneys and beef livers, yeast, tomato juice, and orange juice.
The main benefit of adding folic acid to the human diet is to prevent folate deficiency and hyperhomocysteinemia. Especially pregnant women are at risk of miscarriage or severe birth defects if they are folate deficient. Low folate blood levels have sometimes been seen to link to other conditions such as depression, memory decline, and stroke.
How does folic acid work on hair growth?
Folic acid is vital for humans development as it is central in producing DNA and for cell growth.
It is one of the important nutrients that may promote healthy hair but does not specifically combat male pattern hair loss.
One study has looked at graying of hair in relation to biotin, vitamin b12, and folic acid. The results showed that 55.8% of patients who had gray hair had Vitamin B12 deficiency compared to only 17.3% of the patients in the control group. Also, the percentage of patients who were deficient increased the severity of graying.
Folic acid did not have that much of a difference. 38.5% of the gray-haired patients had folic acid deficiency compared to 36.5% in the control group. The actual numbers of cases were 20 vs 19, so the difference in such a small sample size is not considered big enough to be statistically significant.
However, if the folic acid deficient patients also were deficient in vitamin B12, 13 of these cases had graying, whereas only 4 in the control group.
Top 3 Folic Acid Supplements for Hair Growth
1. Nutricost Folic Acid (Vitamin B9) 1000 mcg, 240 Capsules
2. Jarrow Formulas Methyl Folate 5-MTHF, 400 Mcg
3. Double Strength and Most Bioactive Methyl Folate
Biotin for hair growth
Biotin is a B-vitamin. It does not have any effect on normal pattern baldness in men who have sufficient biotin levels, as typical male pattern baldness is genetically determined.
However, biotin has shown to benefit the hair growth of those who are deficient in biotin.
The overall thickness and look of the hair can be affected by biotin. It is one of the few hair loss treatments that have been studied and showed to improve hair growth in patients with biotin deficiency.
However, keep in mind that most who see an improvement in hair growth usually had experienced hair loss due to biotin deficiency first, so once that biotin levels were back to sufficient or optimal levels, the hair loss was reduced or reversed.
Where to buy biotin?
Basically, any big pharmacy or supplement store should have it.
But the best way to get it is to order it online. Amazon has lots of biotin products, usually from 5000 mcg to 10,000 mcg.
Top 3 Biotin Supplements for Hair Growth
1. SR Biotin 10,000 mcg with Organic Coconut Oil, 120 soft gels
2. Nature’s Bounty Biotin Supplement, 10,000 mcg, 120 soft gels
3. Pure Research’s Extra STrength Biotin, 25,000 mcg liquid drops, 60 servings
- claims to have up to 3x more absorption than capsules or pills.
Top 3 Biotin Shampoos:
1. Osensia’s Biotin Thickening Shampoo for Hair Growth
- free of parabens and sulfate, and contains protein, fenugreek, and burdock.
2. Reline’s Biotin Thickening Shampoo
- rosemary, aloe vera, coconut
- free of sulfate and parabens
- safe for color-treated hair
3. Botanic Hearth Biotin Shampoo and Conditioner
- with ginger oil and keratin
- sulfate-free
Biotin and Folic Acid F.A.Q
which is better for hair growth biotin or folic acid?
- for hair loss, if you are folate deficient: definitely folic acid is the most important for preventing hair loss caused by folate deficiency
- for those who are not deficient in folate: biotin is better for the overall growth of thick and healthy hair
- taking both is optimal
can you take biotin and folic acid together?
- Yes. But you may have to change your diet, dosage, or medicine to balance it. Consult a doctor or pharmacist.
How effective are folic acid and biotin for hair growth?
- Folic acid is only effective if you are folate deficient and suffer hair loss because of it. Once your folate levels are back to normal you should regrow some of the lost hair if all else is equal.
- Biotin is most effective for those who are biotin deficient but also helps in the general growth of hair in terms of thickness, volume, and strength.
Which folic acid is the best?
- Any folic acid supplement is sufficient. Folic acid is twice as easily absorbed as actual folates.
When to take it?
- Every day, any time where it is convenient. What matters most is that you take it.
How to take it?
- You can take it through multivitamins, chewable folic acid, or pills
How much to take?
- The US Public Health Service and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (the CDC) recommends all women who could become pregnant to take at least 400 mcg of folic acid daily.
- Generally one can take enough to cover the 100% Daily Value listed on the nutritional label on your supplements.
Why it is important to take folic acid?
- Some birth defects in children of women who are folate deficient usually happen in the first weeks of the pregnancy, even before a woman knows that she is pregnant. That’s why it is so important to have sufficient folate levels, even before one gets pregnant.
- Getting into the habit of taking folic acid daily will reduce the risk of birth defects caused by folate deficiency.
Where to buy Folic Acid?
- You can buy it at any store that sells multivitamins, such as a pharmacy
- Many basic multivitamins also contain folic acid, so make sure to check the supplement fact label.
- Another alternative is to buy it on Amazon
