What supplements should cancer patients avoid? Other natural supplements that may be detrimental to cancer patients undergoing treatment include: Grapefruit or grapefruit juice: A popular diet aid, grapefruit inhibits enzymes in the liver and can interfere with beta blockers.
Can cancer patients take biotin? Biotin is water-soluble (can dissolve in water) and must be taken in every day. Not enough biotin can cause skin, nerve, and eye disorders. Biotin is present in larger amounts in some cancer tissue than in normal tissue. Attaching biotin to substances used to treat some types of cancer helps them find cancer cells.
What are the dangers of taking too much biotin? Biotin supplements can cause problems if you take too much. Side effects can include skin rashes, digestive upset, problems with insulin release, and kidney problems. As with any supplement, the safety of long-term or high-dose use isn’t known.
Related Questions
Can biotin affect tumor markers?
If you take biotin, it can skew the results of any test that uses it in the lab, including some for sex hormones, thyroid function, and the cancers above. When there’s lots of biotin in the bloodstream, it can’t bind to biotin used in the diagnostic test (believe it or not, it’s a common ingredient).