Biotin: Origin & Interesting Facts

Interesting facts about biotin

Biotin helps maintain normal hair.

Biotin is a crucial vitamin from the B group, which is why the alternative name vitamin B7 also appears. In the past, the vitamin was also called vitamin H.


Biotin describes a water-soluble vitamin. It is a colourless, rather solid substance which is resistant to atmospheric oxygen but could melt at excessive temperatures.

Origin Biotin

Vitamin B7 has a lengthy history of development that began as early as 1898.

Scientists extracted the substance from various products such as yeast and examined the properties of vitamin B7 until it became clear in 1927 that biotin is strongly binding and reduces the biological availability of certain proteins.

It wasn't until 1940 that it was discovered that the biotin known today and the vitamin H and coenzyme R known at the time are identical. In the course of this, Vincent du Vigneaud succeeded in filtering out the chemical structure of biotin in 1942, while the first chemical synthesis of the vitamin took place in 1943.

production of biotin

Biotin is found in numerous foods, so that the daily requirement can be easily covered through food. Some of the optimal products for a balanced biotin household are:

  • Yeast
  • soybeans
  • nuts
  • oatmeal
  • Wholemeal Wheat Flour
  • rice (unpeeled)
  • apples
  • mushrooms
  • strawberries

By Christina Treu –

updated 10 Feb 2022

Christina Faithful

Editorial office Frummi

Christina Faithful has been writing for since May 2019 Frummi . She is ambitious to always check the best sources and to write the most qualified texts for our customers.

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