A number of eye opening studies show that biotin (vitamin B7) megadoses can dramatically improve diabetes, and even reverse it.
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The most striking of the bunch was done in 1993.
People with type 2 diabetes (>171 mg/dL fasting blood sugar) were recruited.
These people were on sulfonylurea drugs or dietary treatments, with little to no success in controlling their diabetes.
People either took 9 mg (a HUGE dose) of biotin or placebo.
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People with diabetes had less than 60% of the serum biotin that healthy people did.
This was strongly correlated to higher blood sugar.
The higher the biotin level, the lower the blood sugar.
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Biotin cut blood sugar nearly in half after just one month.
232.2 ➜ 128 mg/dL.
Their pyruvate and lactate levels also dropped substantially,
indicating less buildup of intermediate glucose metabolites and thus better carbohydrate metabolism.
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Biotin cut blood sugar by more than half, even after years of administration.
Up to 4 years - the effect was consistent.
Note: these people were also put on an antimicrobial "in order to prevent the proliferation of the usual intestinal microflora that might digest or degrade the administered biotin."
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One patient showed complete reversal of diabetes with the biotin megadose.
Blood sugar cut by 2/3s, now at normal levels.
Was able to wean off of diabetic drugs in the process without raising blood sugar.
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Other studies have shown similar results.
For example here a megadose of 16 mg biotin / day reduced fasting blood sugar by over half in one week in diabetics.
Crazy.
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A 2022 meta analysis has confirmed the beneficial effects of biotin in insulin resistance / diabetes.
They found on average a 22 mg/dL drop in fasting blood sugar,
and a 61 mg/dL drop in triglycerides - a type of fat in the blood that becomes high during diabetes.
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Why biotin is so effective for diabetes:
High blood sugar and insulin resistance are fundamentally from the inability of cells to oxidize glucose for energy.
This is what keeps glucose high in the blood.
Biotin is known to increase the expression of the enzyme glucokinase (or hexokinase) - the first step in breaking down sugar into energy. This means it promotes that process.
Biotin is also a cofactor for several enzymes, notably here pyruvate carboxylase, which replenishes the citric acid cycle in the mitochondria, supporting energy production.
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