Vitamin K

Meet Vitamin K

Vitamin K is a fat-soluble vitamin that plays an important role in blood clotting. In fact, without it the blood does not clot. Vitamin K contributes to skeletal health, as it plays an important role in the deposition of calcium in the bones. Like vitamin D, it is produced by itself in our body, but usually not in quantities that cover its needs. 

Vitamin K has two forms, K1 (phylloquinone) and K2 (a group of molecules called menaquinones). It was originally thought that the two forms play a similar role but this is not entirely correct. After 1997 it began to appear that vitamin K2 was less useful in blood clotting while it served to deposit calcium in the bones and prevent it from depositing in the arteries, i.e. preventing atherosclerosis.

Vitamin K1 acts on the liver and helps synthesize four of the 13 proteins needed for blood clotting. Simply put, without vitamin K1 the blood does not clot. Therefore, the lack of vitamin K1 from the diet can cause bleeding complications.


Sources of Vitamin K

 Foods high in vitamin K are pork liver, broccoli, spinach, collard greens, endives, lettuce, green cabbage, turnips, grape leaves, carrots, Brussels sprouts, asparagus, collards, boiled pumpkin, fresh onions, parsley, chocolate, soy, chestnuts, almonds, etc.


Benefits 


Vitamin K is used to prevent cancer and to remove varicose veins. At the same time, vitamin K plays a key role in dealing with blood clots, preventing excessive bleeding. 





Low levels of vitamin K increase the risk of uncontrolled bleeding. And while vitamin K deficiency may be rare in adults, it is very common in newborns. Vitamin K is also used to treat an overdose of anticoagulant drugs that thin the blood.

Vitamin K deficiency can occur in: a) those who have a disease that affects absorption in the digestive tract, such as Crohn's disease, b) those taking medications that interfere with vitamin K absorption, c) those who are severely malnourished, and d) those who drink alcohol to a large extent.