Articles > Benefits of Vitamin K

Vitamin K's traditional claim to fame is that it helps blood coagulate. But recent research has identified new benefits from its use: It may be a key anti-aging vitamin and it may prevent both heart disease and osteoporosis. It's also a stronger antioxidant than vitamin E or coenzyme Q10. In addition, Vitamin K may be the future of treating certain kinds of cancer. And lack of it may have something to do with Alzheimer's disease.

Vitamin K is a powerful antioxidant that has been approved for the treatment of osteoporosis in Japan since 1995.

Health benefits associated with vitamin K:

Prevents calcification of arteries and other soft tissue.
The vascular system can suffer such damage that valve replacement and coronary artery bypass procedures may become necessary.

Vitamin K protects the heart
Sudden death from heart attack is associated with calcification of the aorta, especially in young men. In the Framingham Heart Study, 35 year-old men with calcifications in the aorta had a 7 times increased risk of dying of a sudden heart attack. The risk decreases with age, but the chance of suddenly dying of a heart attack is doubled in people under 65 if their aortas are calcified.

Prevents elevations of IL-6
Rising levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) are an indication of aging. A chemical messenger for the immune system, IL-6 promotes inflammation. With age, this cytokine takes over and causes unwarranted inflammation throughout the body, including joints and brain. Alzheimer's patients have highly elevated levels of IL-6 in their brains.

Regulates the body's calcium
Abnormal calcium accumulation can damage the brain. In fact, changes seen in Alzheimer's disease reflect disturbances in calcium metabolism. The pineal gland and the kidneys are especially vulnerable to excess calcium infiltration, while the skeleton suffers from a lack of calcium.

Promotes bone calcification
Vitamin K is necessary for the synthesis of osteocalcin that attracts calcium to the bone matrix.

Experiments show that it can inhibit the growth of many forms of cancer, including breast, ovary, colon, stomach and kidney

May play a role in the regulation of blood sugar
The pancreas, which makes insulin, has the second highest amount of vitamin K in the body. In the first study of its kind, Japanese researchers found that vitamin K deficiency can have effects similar to diabetes.

How to Take It

As with all supplements, check with a healthcare provider before taking vitamin K or giving it to a child. In general, people with vitamin K deficiencies related to malabsorption (such as gallbladder or biliary disease, cystic fibrosis, celiac disease, and Crohn's disease) will benefit most from a multivitamin containing vitamin K, rather than an individual vitamin K supplement. In certain circumstances, vitamin K may be administered by injection in to a vein or muscle by a healthcare professional.

Daily intake for dietary vitamin K (according to the U.S. RDA) are listed below:

Pediatric

Infants birth to 6 months: 2 mcg
Infants 7 to 12 months: 2.5 mcg
Children 1 to 3 years: 30 mcg
Children 4 to 8 years: 55 mcg
Children 9 to 13 years: 60 mcg
Adolescents 14 to 18 years: 75 mcg
A single injection of vitamin K is also given at birth.

Adult

Males 19 years and older: 120 mcg
Females 19 years and older: 90 mcg
Pregnant and breastfeeding females 14 to 18 years: 75 mcg
Pregnant and breastfeeding females 19 years and older: 90 mcg

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