Are you a bleeder? Maybe that's a crass way of diagnosing, but if you have a tendency to have bloody noses or bruises easily, you may need a boost of vitamin K. Richmond chiropractic patients' hearts and bones may well benefit, too!
Vitamin K
Now, vitamin K isn't a "popular" vitamin, but it's a vital vitamin when it comes to blood clotting. Without vitamin K, blood wouldn't coagulate or clot. Some studies now also suggest that it’s important to keep bones strong in the elderly folks, too. (1) We'll talk some about that here, too. So Johnson Chiropractic thought we'd share some facts about vitamin K that may enhance your chiropractic treatment plan.
What is Vitamin K?
It's a fat-soluble vitamin that the body stores in fat tissue and the liver. You can get it from eating leafy green foods or from the production of vitamin K by the bacteria in your intestines. If you take antibiotics, you may kill off the bacteria which in turn lower your vitamin K stores. So consider eating more chlorophyll-filled foods like broccoli, kale, spinach, asparagus, and dark green lettuce. Chlorophyll gives plants their green color and provides vitamin K. (2)
There are three forms of vitamin K:
- K1 (phylloquinone/natural form or phytonadione/synthetic form) - naturally found in vegetables
- K2 (menaquinone) - produced by bacteria in the intestines
- K3 (menaphthone or mendione)
K1 is the only one available as a supplement (in multivitamins or solo tablets). (2) Johnson Chiropractic touts dietary intake and sometimes supplementation. We work with our Richmond chiropractic patients to make it easy and convenient for them and their lifestyles to balance their nutrition.
Uses
Johnson Chiropractic looks at the overall health of our Richmond chiropractic patients, so your heart and bone health is important to us, too.
- Blood-clotting – K1
- Heart disease prevention – K2
- Vitamin K2 is gaining recognition for its heart disease prevention. (3)
- In the 10 year Rotterdam study of 4800 persons, those consumed the most vitamin K2 reports have a 50% reduced risk of arterial calcification and 50% reduced risk for cardiovascular events. (4)
- Another 16,000 person study reports a 9% reduction in coronary heart disease for every 10 mcg vitamin K2 consumed. (4)
- Bone Health – K2
- K2 is also gaining notoriety for protecting against osteoporosis. (5)
- Vitamin K2 menaquinone is essential for the binding of calcium to the bone matrix. (4)
Barriers to Vitamin K Absorption
Gallbladder disease, celiac disease, cystic fibrosis, and Crohn’s disease may prevent enough absorption of vitamin K. (umm) Multivitamin supplements or vitamin K shots may work better for them. (2) And if you are on anticoagulant therapy, be careful of your intake of vitamin K through food or supplementation. It may affect how this therapy works. (1)