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Are your nails feeling weak, brittle, or peeling? If so, you might be wondering if your diet is playing a role in their condition
Summary
1The link between vitamin B12 and nail health
Now, here’s where it gets interesting: if you’re low on B12, your nails might start showing signs of distress…
2Biotin and nail health
Vitamin B7 is needed by the body to help make fatty acids making glucose from non-carb sources metabolise fats, carbohydrates and protein…
3Sources of biotin
You should be able to get all the biotin you need by eating a varied and balanced diet. This is because the bacteria that live naturally…
We’ve all heard that calcium is the key to strong nails, but here’s the surprising truth: that’s actually a myth!1
The good news is that there are plenty of other vitamins and minerals to support your nails.1 Magnesium, iron, zinc, sodium, and copper all play important functions when it comes to your nail health.1 Plus, there’s evidence to support the role of certain B vitamins in nail health too.1-3
Can B vitamins help with nail growth?
While several B vitamins play a role in keeping your nails strong and beautiful, two stand out from the crowd: vitamins B7 (biotin) and B12.1-3
While vitamin B9 (folate) is often mentioned in discussions about nail health, the evidence for its direct impact is less robust. Some research suggests that a B9 deficiency might lead to changes in nail appearance, but more studies are needed to fully understand its role.3
The link between vitamin B12 and nail health
Vitamin B12 has important functions in the body, including:5-7
- making red blood cells
- keeping the nervous system healthy
- releasing energy from food
- sing folate (vitamin B9)
Now, here’s where it gets interesting: if you’re low on B12, your nails might start showing signs of distress. You could notice blue-black discolouration or even strange streaks.1,4,6 But don’t worry, adding some B12 back into your diet can help those nails bounce back to normal.
Sources of vitamin B12
If you eat meat, fish or dairy foods, you should be able to get enough vitamin B12 from your diet.5
However, as vitamin B12 isn’t found naturally in foods such as fruit, vegetables and grains, people following vegan diets may not get enough of it.5
Sources of vitamin B12 include:5
- meat
- fish
- milk
- cheese
- eggs
- some fortified breakfast cereals
If you don’t regularly eat many of these foods, you may want to consider taking a vitamin B12 supplement to make sure you don’t become deficient.
Biotin and nail health
Vitamin B7 is needed by the body to:3,5,8
- help make fatty acids
- making glucose from non-carb sources
- metabolise fats, carbohydrates and protein
Of all the B vitamins implicated in nail health, by far the most widely researched is vitamin B7.1,3 There is limited evidence and some of it is conflicting, but that which exists does seem to support the role of biotin in nail health.1
For instance, one study found that when people with brittle nails were supplemented with biotin, the thickness of their nail plate increased by 25%.1,9 However, it’s important to note that this is just one study.
In another study, researchers showed that biotin wasn’t equally effective in all patients.1 However, those who supplemented with biotin did display a trend towards stronger nails.1 Notably, nail brittleness recurred about 10 weeks after supplementation with biotin was stopped.1
Furthermore, another study found that supplementing with biotin could improve the firmness, hardness and thickness of brittle nails.10
Overall, however, there is currently a lack of sufficient evidence to recommend biotin as a supplement for healthy individuals.1
Sources of biotin
You should be able to get all the biotin you need by eating a varied and balanced diet.5 This is because the bacteria that live naturally in your bowel are able to make biotin, so it's not entirely clear whether getting additional biotin through your diet is necessary.5 So, biotin is only needed in very small amounts to help the body make fatty acids.5
This means a biotin deficiency is rare outside of high-risk populations, such as people who struggle with alcoholism or chronic use of epileptic medications as well as pregnant or breastfeeding women.3
Biotin deficiency is associated with hair thinning, a scaly rash around the eyes, nose, mouth and perineum (the area between the anus and genitals), nail changes, skin infections and neurologic symptoms (such as ataxia, seizures, depression, lethargy and paresthesia).3
If you’re worried about the condition of your nails, foods rich in biotin include:3,8,11
- organ meats (e.g. liver, although it is advised to avoid this in pregnancy)
- eggs
- fish
- seeds
- nuts
- oats
As there is some limited evidence to link biotin supplementation with nail health, if you’re at risk of low biotin levels you could also try supplementing with biotin tablets.1,10 According to the NHS, taking 0.9mg or less of biotin per day is unlikely to cause any harm.5
The final say
There are many vitamins and minerals that may contribute to nail health.1 Of these, there have been some suggested links between vitamins B7, B9 and B12 with nail health.1-3
However, due to limited evidence, it’s still up for debate whether these vitamins will keep your nails healthy.1-4,6,10
You can also use our H&B&Me Vitamin B12 Blood Test to check your B12 levels from home. However, if you’re looking for personalised healthcare advice, you should always speak to a healthcare professional, such as a GP or dietitian.
The content in this article is for information only and should not replace medical care. Please check with your GP or healthcare professional before trying any supplements, treatments or remedies. Food supplements must not be used as a substitute for a varied and balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle.
- Muddasani S, et al. Nutrition and nail disease. Clin Dermatol. 2021;39(5):819–28. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clindermatol.2021.05.009
- Ali MA, et al. Dietary vitamin B complex: Orchestration in human nutrition throughout life with sex differences. Nutrients. 2022;14(19):3940. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14193940
- Hanna M, et al. B vitamins: Functions and uses in medicine. Perm J. 2022;26(2):89–97. https://doi.org/10.7812/tpp/21.204
- NHS. Vitamin B12 or folate deficiency anaemia [Internet]. [cited 2024 May 19]. Available from: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamin-b12-or-folate-deficiency-anaemia/
- NHS. B vitamins and folic acid - Vitamins and minerals [Internet]. [cited 2024 May 20]. Available from: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamins-and-minerals/vitamin-b/
- Brescoll J, Daveluy S. A review of vitamin B12 in dermatology. Am J Clin Dermatol. 2015;16(1):27–33. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40257-014-0107-3
- NHS Inform. Vitamin B12 or folate deficiency anaemia symptoms and treatments [Internet]. [cited 2024 May 19]. Available from: https://www.nhsinform.scot/illnesses-and-conditions/nutritional/vitamin-b12-or-folate-deficiency-anaemia/
- Jean Guy LeBlanc. B-complex vitamins: Sources, intakes and novel applications. BoD – Books on Demand; 2022. [cited 2024 May 19]. Available from: https://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=Nl5iEAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA79&dq=b+vitamins+nail+health+&ots=hVEbyRd_5v&sig=-Qw4_xiC1cRt_nKRfw35LdkIsxY&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false
- Hochman LG, et al. Brittle nails: response to daily biotin supplementation. Cutis. 1993;51(4):303–5. https://europepmc.org/article/med/8477615
- Lipner SR, Scher RK. Biotin for the treatment of nail disease: What is the evidence? J Dermatolog Treat. 2017;29(4):411–4. https://doi.org/10.1080/09546634.2017.1395799
- NHS. Foods to avoid in pregnancy [Internet]. [cited 2024 Oct 28]. Available from: https://www.nhs.uk/pregnancy/keeping-well/foods-to-avoid/
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