6 Things You Should Know About Vitamin K

Less well known than most vitamins, but no less important, vitamin K plays a crucial role in blood clotting, metabolic processes such as cholesterol regulation, and overall cardiovascular health.

The Vitamin K is one of four fat – soluble vitamins, ie they need fat to be absorbed. It is best known for its role in blood clotting. Despite being so important, this vitamin is not usually talked about as much as others.

In this article we will give it the importance it deserves and we will see what its functions are in the body, in which foods to find it and how to detect deficiencies.

Different types of vitamin K

Two versions of this nutrient are found in food: vitamin K1, found in green leafy vegetables, and vitamin K2, found in meat products and fermented foods.

• K ₁ phylloquinone. The vitamin K ₁, also called phylloquinone, is a type of vitamin K found in plants and plant products such as leafy vegetables (spinach, kale, chard, mustard, parsley, romaine lettuce, etc.), cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, etc.), asparagus, bok choy, peas, fruits such as plums, blackberries, grapes, blueberries or blueberry, among others. This vitamin is mainly responsible for regulating blood clotting.
• K ₂ menaquinone. The vitamin K ₂ or menaquinone, is produced by bacteria, so it is essential to have healthy bacteria in our microbiota so they can form this vitamin. In food we can also find it in fermented food such as sauerkraut, tempeh and kombucha, although the amounts vary greatly according to the production method that each food has taken. Among the benefits of vitamin K2, better bone health stands out . It is also associated with fewer cases of cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.

Properties of vitamin K

• It is an antioxidant

Like several of its “sisters” (vitamins A, C and E), vitamin K has antioxidant functions in the body that prevent the formation of free radicals and, therefore, prevents premature aging.

“A protective effect against leukemia, liver, prostate or colon cancer has been proven”, explains nutritionist Martina Ferrer.

• It is essential for blood clotting

Let’s think about a day when you are cutting your vegetables, like any other day, and for some reason the knife you had in your hand brushes your finger and begins to bleed. This is normal and nothing will happen when it is a minor injury, because not much blood is lost (unless there is an infection, but that is another matter); If you notice, blood clots almost immediately, just so you stop losing blood.

This clotting is due to many chemical reactions in your body, known as the clotting cascade. In this cascade, clotting factors work to form fibrin clots, a fibrous protein that acts as a plug. Some clotting factors depend on vitamin K ₁ to function and that is the importance of this vitamin.

There are people who must take anticoagulants for some medical condition (for example, warfarin) and, depending on the type of anticoagulant, it will alter some factor in the coagulation cascade. These anticoagulants, as the name implies, are used to prevent blood clots or to treat already formed clots.

One of the medical indications when taking anticoagulants is to avoid excessive consumption of vitamin K, so many people completely avoid foods rich in vitamin K ₁ that we mentioned earlier; the problem is that foods rich in vitamin K are also rich in other essential nutrients for good health.

It is crucial that you know that more than completely eliminating foods that contain vitamin K, it is better that their consumption is stable, so that your doctor can adjust the medication according to consumption; that is, eat about the same amount of foods rich in vitamin K every day, instead of completely eliminating these foods.

Some anticoagulant medications already exist in medicine that act at other points in the clotting cascade where it is not necessary to stop consuming vitamin K, so it is important to talk to your doctor about it to see the options.

• Prevent osteoporosis

Recent studies have concluded that, in addition to vitamin D, vitamin K also plays a crucial role in fixing calcium in the bones. Those who eat foods rich in vitamin K have been shown to have stronger bones.

• It is essential for babies

As soon as they are born, they are given vitamin K, with a single intramuscular injection or oral drops for 12 weeks, because it prevents hemorrhagic disease of the newborn.

Foods rich in vitamin K

The plant foods richest in vitamin K, which contain about 40 mcg of vitamin K1 per 100 g, are:

• Beet greens (700 mcg of vitamin K per 100 g)
• Spinach (75 mcg of vitamin K per 100 g)
• Fermented soybeans (1,000 mcg of vitamin K2 in 100 g)
• Broccoli (40 mcg of vitamin K1 per 100 g)
• Kale (40 mcg of vitamin K1 per 100 g)
• Red cabbage (40 mcg of vitamin K1 per 100 g)
• Romaine lettuce (40 mcg of vitamin K1 per 100 g)
• Parsley (40 mcg of vitamin K1 per 100 g)

Some examples of recipes rich in vitamin K: you could combine spinach, mango, cocoa and coconut chips in a smoothie; prepare some romaine lettuce boats stuffed with lentils, sprouts, sauerkraut and vinaigrette, or some buckwheat crepes with steamed broccoli, pumpkin and sunflower seeds and parsley.

Relationship between the intestinal microbiota and vitamin K ₂

It has been known for many years, as shown in various studies, that the intestinal microbiota helps to produce vitamin K ₂ , which contributes to reaching adequate vitamin K requirements.

The whole plant foods are high in fiber, probiotics and prebiotics. This means that, even if you do not consume foods rich in vitamin K ₂ , if you follow a diet based on whole foods of plant origin, your intestinal flora will remain healthy and will be able to produce vitamin K ₂ as needed.

To perform this function, a diet rich in prebiotic fiber and the presence of fermented ones is advisable.

Antibiotics can cause deficiency

There really is no reason to be deficient in vitamin K when eating healthy. As you will notice, a plant-based diet includes a large amount of foods rich in this vitamin, so it is not common for a vitamin K deficiency to occur in people who eat this way.

However, there are patients who take a large amount of antibiotics. Antibiotics kill healthy bacteria from your body, causing a loss of ability to make vitamin K properly.

A vitamin K deficiency can lead to bone loss, bruising, heavy periods, and blood clotting problems. The deficiency can occur in people with difficulties in the absorption of nutrients (celiac disease, Crohn …) or with intestinal dysbiosis due to excess antibiotics.

Therefore, it is important that if you are going to take antibiotics, you protect your intestinal flora with probiotics and prebiotics from natural, fermented foods and, perhaps, from supplements. This with the aim of recovering the healthy bacteria that die from the consumption of antibiotics.

Another cause of vitamin K deficiency is when there are gastrointestinal diseases or medications that prevent proper absorption of this vitamin.

Symptoms of vitamin K deficiency

With food, it is difficult to have a vitamin deficiency. Even so, if you take anticoagulants (warfarin, Sintrom, aspirin …) it is advisable to review your diet, since vitamin K and these products interact. A stable daily consumption of leafy greens and foods rich in vitamin K is recommended.

These are the red flags you should be aware of:

• Bruising (bruising) easily
• Common bleeding (blood in stool, urine, or from the nose)
• Heavy menses

If you suspect that you may have a vitamin K deficiency, it is important to see a doctor to get the proper tests done and treat the problem according to the corresponding cause.

Can it be taken in supplement form?

Taking a supplement should be done under professional supervision. It can be found alone or in combination with calcium, magnesium or vitamin D. In addition, both K1 (phylloquinones) and K2 (menaquinones) can be found. Menaquinone-4 and menaquinone-7 are common.