Biotin Deficiency and Egg whites

[Lotus97]

I think I might have figured out why biotin has been causing me problems and why I was able to tolerate 2000+ mcg in the past. I've had 2 crashes in the past six months and I had also stopped many of my ATP supplements so my Krebs Cycle right now is dysfunctionial. I suppose having egg protein shakes 3-4 times a week hasn't helped either. This is how dbkita and Jeffrez explained it to me.

I think what's more often the case is that if there's any cell toxicity (heavy metals, etc.) or lack of intracellular carnitine or other energy co-factors, or a lack of downstream resources (cortisol, thyroid hormone, etc.), pumping in biotin just cranks up the system way too much and then it crashes. Biotin in many cases is probably better left until most other things are sorted out, especially if you're already crashing from it!

Biotin stimulates the main anaplerotic reaction for the Krebs cycle. This is big in liver gluconeogenesis. Btw it is also the cofactor for the succinyl COA chain (different point in that path where adb12 also works I believe).

Think of an anaplerotic reaction as a backdoor to replenish an intermediate in the Krebs cycle. This however is an important one. It takes one ATP, but if the rest of the Krebs cycle is working it will of course make multiple ATP molecules (the whole point of the Krebs cycle).

The front door is pyruvate to acetyl COA via pyruvate dehydrogenase and then into the Krebs cycle. Pyruvate dehydrogenase needs TPP. Got that mixed with biotin in the previous post. Carnitine plays a big role in loading the front door of course, as to some extent alpha lipoic acid. We also should not forget COQ10 that manages the electron transport chain.

So I agree with Jeffrez that without a functioning Krebs cycle, too much backloading via anaplerotic reactions will just spin things up and maybe cause an energy spike. Before taking adb12 I used to not be able to tolerate much biotin as I would have almost akin to a sugar crash. But now I take 2000 mcg a day as it is beneficial. I am even thinking of moving that up, but I plan to introduce L-carnitine and try pantethine first.

 

[_June]

Umm... guys?

Biotin comes from egg yolks, not whites. In fact, eating egg whites makes biotin leave your body, increasing your need for biotin. Eating many egg whites can actually make you biotin deficient if you don't compensate for it.

Liver is also rich in biotin.

 

[L'engle]

L'engle, that's one of the top pictures here I couldn't put in words why it's so funny, but it sure is.

Do you mean my avatar?

 

[Lotus97]

Umm... guys?

Biotin comes from egg yolks, not whites. In fact, eating egg whites makes biotin leave your body, increasing your need for biotin. Eating many egg whites can actually make you biotin deficient if you don't compensate for it.

Liver is also rich in biotin.

I'm not sure if you're referring to my post, but what I meant was that my egg protein shake didn't help because it contributed to a biotin deficiency thereby causing my Krebs Cycle to become even more dysfunctional. Once I increased my biotin dose again I encountered problems for the reasons suggested by the people I quoted.

 

[_June]

Lotus97
No, I just found it strange that people who eat many egg whites and have biotin deficiency would overlook egg yolks, which are a very rich source of biotin.
It's just the strange wacky world we live in today!

I was replying to:

Has anyone ever had this experience or even heard of it? This is a weird one for me.

Just wanted to say that egg whites have something in them that binds into biotin and makes them leave your body, making you deficient if you eat too many.


All the nutrients are in the yolk, not the white.

But, that reminds me. L'engle:
If you cook your eggs with lots of fat, they won't stick to the pan. We eat eggs often at my house and they never stick. I use a stainless steel pan. To cook 3 eggs (if I'm cooking just for myself), I heat 4 tablespoons of beef tallow, beef marrow, lard (or bacon grease), or butter, and as soon as the fat starts to sizzle I add the eggs.
Butter is my least favorite, it burns quickly leaving a huge mess. Marrow is the tastiest. Bacon grease is tasty too. For scrambled eggs, tallow makes the fluffiest.

Anyway, once the eggs are cooked, they've absorbed all the fat and there's none on the pan. The eggs slide off the pan leaving it almost as clean as before.

The eggs only stick if I overcook them.

 

[Lotus97]

_June
ah, ok. I don't mind egg yolks since even boneless skinless chicken breasts have cholesterol, but I have a food sensitivity to lecithin so I don't eat them often. If I get omega 3 eggs then maybe I'll have a few yolks. But egg protein shakes are so convenient that I have them a lot. For those looking for an alternative to butter, unrefined coconut oil has sort of a buttery flavor and Smart Balance makes a low fat non-hydrogenated margarine that also tastes pretty good.

 

[L'engle]

Yeah the egg whites cause the deficiency. not sure how the other idea got in here. I don't think we can compensate for the egg white problem by supplementing with biotin because of the other problems that may cause. I stopped eating them altogether. There's much better protein sources out there.

I'm going to abandon this thread now since I solved my problem. I don't even like egg whites anymore. My regular diet without them isn't causing a biotin deficiency.

 

[Lotus97]

I'm not sure egg protein powder is a problem. I found this:
Egg-white protein powder is typically made from dehydrated egg whites that have been processed into a fine powder. Many manufacturers use a spray-drying process to produce egg-white protein powder. It also undergoes a pasteurization process to prevent salmonella and inactivate the avidin protein.

 

[L'engle]

I'm not sure egg protein powder is a problem. I found this:
Egg-white protein powder is typically made from dehydrated egg whites that have been processed into a fine powder. Many manufacturers use a spray-drying process to produce egg-white protein powder. It also undergoes a pasteurization process to prevent salmonella and inactivate the avidin protein.

Hmmm, that's interesting. I wasn't using the powder, just the liquid egg whites. They are pasteurized but perhaps not in the same way. I have no idea about the powder. The liquid ones definitely caused a problem for me. Good luck.

 

[Lotus97]

Hmmm, that's interesting. I wasn't using the powder, just the liquid egg whites. They are pasteurized but perhaps not in the same way. I have no idea about the powder. The liquid ones definitely caused a problem for me. Good luck.

It's also possible that the source could be wrong. The brands I've bought don't specify whether or not they're pasteurized (let alone if they have avidin), but Now Foods' egg white protein powder does say specifically that the avidin has been removed:
This Egg white Powder is pasteurized which inactivates the avidin glycoprotein. Therefore, biotin fortification is not necessary for this product

 

[xjhuez]

FYI I've found two problems with egg protein powder - it is potentially an excitotoxin due to being hydrolyzed (the NOW site doesn't say "hydrolyzed", so perhaps it isn't) and also almost all of the cholesterol in dried eggs is oxidized.

http://www.crcnetbase.com/doi/abs/10.1201/9781439822210.ch7

 

[Lotus97]

FYI I've found two problems with egg protein powder - it is potentially an excitotoxin due to being hydrolyzed (the NOW site doesn't say "hydrolyzed", so perhaps it isn't) and also almost all of the cholesterol in dried eggs is oxidized.

http://www.crcnetbase.com/doi/abs/10.1201/9781439822210.ch7

I wasn't able to access the rest of that article, but the egg protein powders say there isn't any cholesterol in them. The cholesterol is only in the yolk and the egg protein powders don't have fat so I don't think there's yolk in the powder, but maybe something in the rest of the article explains what you mean. I certainly don't need any more excitotoxins, but I usually only have 1/3 a scoop as a serving. I mix it with pea, hemp, and rice protein and also get protein from oat bran I add to it. Now I'm finding out there's a protein in oats that's almost bad as gluten so I'm not sure what to do about that.

 

[L'engle]

Now I'm finding out there's a protein in oats that's almost bad as gluten so I'm not sure what to do about that.

Oh that's bad news. I eat a fair bit of oats.