Biotin?

[bartfull]

My primary symptom of celiac is palmoplantar pustular psoriasis. While doing some more research on this, I found that some doctors reccommend taking a biotin supplement. They say a person with Celiac is getting NO biotin at all from their food, and that biotin deficiency can cause skin problems and hair loss, yeast overgrowth, plus a lot of other nasty things.

They ALSO say that we need to take a pro-biotic called clostridium butyricum. According to what I read, the probiotics found in most yogurts actually thrive on biotin, so we need this other "bug" to set our systems back to normal. Well, I can't find this pro-biotic anywhere. I'm thinking it might be dangerous and not even sold in the US.

So, I got some biotin today anyway. They reccommend 10 milligrams a day and say you can't overdose on this stuff because it is water soluable, and there are no side effects.

Has anyone else here had any experience with this?

[ravenwoodglass]

I take Biotin daily to help with my hair and skin. When I get severely glutened I lose a lot of hair and it does take some time to grow back.

I don't take probiotics but do eat live culture yogurt, Yoplait only, or eat saurkraut for its probiotic value.

[mommida]

I swear by taking Biotin! The main food source would be consuming animal liver. Not gonna happen for me that way. I have found no research saying that it can be harmful either.

My hair falls out after I have been glutened too.

I currently am not taking probiotics. Just food sources.

[livebetter]

Hi, I am in the process of having celiac disease testing done....no results yet. I have not excluded gluten from my diet yet, but I got palmoplantar pustular psoriasis about a year ago. Regarding your statement "My primary symptom of celiac is palmoplantar pustular psoriasis."-->> is palmoplantar pustular psoriasis (PPP) officially recognized as a symptom of celiac disease that can be used to diagnose celiac disease? I had heard about dermatitis herpetiformis specifically being a celiac symptom, but had not heard about PPP.... Or, is your PPP more a symptom that is a side effect of excluding gluten products from the diet? Do you know if there is a reliable test to determine whether someone has a biotin deficiency - I see mixed info about this on the internet.

Anyway - How are you doing with the biotin supplementation? Has this helped your palmoplantar pustular psoriasis? Have you seen any side effects? I am going to discuss with my doctor trying biotin for my palmoplantar pustular psoriasis. Funny thing with me is that I started eating yogurt daily about a year and half ago.... I started getting the palmoplantar pustular psoriasis about a year ago.... wonder if there is a relationship?

Thanks!

[bartfull]

Hi Lovebetter, and welcome to the forum!

There have been studies linking PPP (and all psoriasis) to food intolerances. My PPP was getting really bad, and I decided to try gluten free to see if it helped. It did at first, but then it came back when I ate gluten free cornbread. It turns out that I am HIGHLY intolerant of corn, as well as gluten. Now it seems that tree nuts bother me too.

I have had times when the PPP is totally GONE, and then I get into corn (it is in EVERYTHING ), and it comes back. Gluten and nuts are easier to avoid. If you go with nothing but meats cooked plain, brown rice, and broccoli, cauliflower, squash or asparagus for a few weeks, I'd be willing to bet you will see mahor healing.

Then, you can start slowly adding other foods. To check out the corn thing, just get yourself some gluten-free cornbread like I did. Within a day or three of eating it, you will know. Then, after you've healed again, try adding nuts. Then nightshade veggies (tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, and eggplant). Once again, if they cause a flairup, you'll know you can't tolerate them. Once you've healed again, try yet a different food.

I'm thinking it's going to take me a year or so, but I WILL find out exactly what else bothers me.

As for biotin, I don't think it helps with the PPP, (it's the diet that does that) but it DOES make my hair stop falling out, and I feel better when I take it.

One other thing I have read about is candida. There are some who think that ALL of our food intolerances come from having rampant yeast overgrowth throughout our systems. To get rid of that, we need to stop all sugars, and keep the carbs as low as possible. (That's why I eat a lot of brown rice - it's WAY lower in carbs than white rice. Besides, many brands of white rice are dusted with corn starch to keep it from being so sticky.) Then you need to find some GOOD probiotics. Some have only acidopholis - we need as many different strains as possible. AND we need to find it without wheat or corn!

If there is anything I can do to help you, just let me know. And don't forget, there are a BUNCH of very knowledgable people on this board who can help us both.

[livebetter]

Hi - Thanks Bartfull - nice to meet you and everyone on this site,

I have had psoriasis for the last 35 years. I am hoping to find out whether any foods trigger my psoriasis...

I just started working with an allergy doctor who is running a bunch of tests on me - starting with gluten, dairy, eggs, wheat, nightshades (the typical foods that are suspect for psoriatics)...

Bartfull - did you actually get tested for any of the other foods that you found you can't eat? Like corn, tree nuts? Or you just knew from trial and error - eating/eliminating the food from your diet?

Thanks

[bartfull]

LIveBetter, (Sorry about the misspelling on my last post - the I and O keys are completely worn on my computer, and I am a hunt and peck typist.)

Anyway, I am going by trial and error. No insurance. But I have heard that allergy tests are often inaccurate anyway.

One of the things, besides the online info, that made me want to try the diet is, my Mom had P for about thirty years. She was under a dermatologist's care for years and years with little improvement. When she was diagnosed with Celiac in 1985, she went on the diet and it wasn't long before her P went COMPLETELY and PERMANENTLY away.

Back then, doctors didn't know as much about either, so everyone thought it was just a coincidence. Of course, both are hereditary, both are autoimmune, so it made sense to me that I had both, just like Mom did. I was right.

The problem is, because I've never had much in the way of digestive symptoms, I don't know if I'm gluten intolorant, or Celiac. If it's Celiac, I am damaging my intestine every time I get "glutened" and I don't even know it. And it turns out that corn can cause the same type of damage. I mean, it's worth staying away from both just for the P and the insomnia, but I'd like to know. Maybe someday I'll have insurance and then I can take the gluten challenge and get tested.

In the meantime though, I'll just stick to the diet, pray that I can stay away from corn, and hope for the best.