What Is Vitamin K2 & Why Is It So Important?

Many people have never heard of Vitamin K2, but this little known nutrient plays an essential role in many aspects of your health. There is currently not a blood test to see if someone is vitamin K2 deficient.

What is Vitamin K?

Vitamin K AKA as vitamin K1 and vitamin K2 are “cousins”, but they are very different. Vitamin K1 was discovered in 1929 as an essential nutrient for blood clotting. Vitamin K2 was discovered in 1994.

Vitamin K1 (phylloquinone) is found in plant foods like leafy greens, whereas Vitamin K2 (menaquinone) is found in animal foods and fermented foods. Vitamin K2 can be further divided into several different subtypes, but the most important ones are MK-4 and MK-7.

How do Vitamins K1 and K2 Work?

Calcium an incredibly important mineral in the human body. It is more than just building material for bones and teeth, it plays a crucial role in many important bodily processes. The roles of Vitamin K1 and K2 are quite different and many feel that they should be classified as separate nutrients altogether.

Vitamin K1 is mostly used by the liver to activate calcium-binding proteins involved in blood clotting, while K2 is used to activate proteins that regulate where calcium ends up in the body.

If you are vitamin K2 deficient, calcium won’t be directed to your bones and teeth and can build up in the arteries, which is a huge risk factor for cardiovascular disease. If you are vitamin K2 deficient, another place that calcium will build up is in dental plaque. This can lead to gingivitis and consequent inflammation, which will add to cardiovascular disease, as well as a number of other inflammation related illnesses.

Vitamin K2 May Help Fight Cancer:

Several studies have been done on Vitamin K2 and certain types of cancer. Two clinical trials suggested that vitamin K2 reduces recurrence of liver cancer and increases survival rates. Vitamin K2 may also reduce the incidence of prostate cancer.

Foods That Are Rich in Vitamin K2:

Humans can partly convert vitamin K1 to K2 in the body. This is useful because the amount of vitamin K1 in a typical diet is ten times that of vitamin K2. Current evidence indicates that the conversion process is inefficient. We therefore benefit much more by consuming vitamin K2 directly.

Vitamin K2 is also produced by gut bacteria in the large intestine. There is some evidence that broad-spectrum antibiotics can contribute to K2 deficiency.

Vitamin K2 is mainly found in certain animal foods and fermented foods, which most people don’t eat much of. Rich animal sources include high-fat dairy products from grass-fed cows, liver and other organs, as well as egg yolks. Fermented foods such as sauerkraut, natto and miso, also contain high levels of vitamin K2.

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