Antioxidants - Fighters against free radical damage
Vitamin K - "For Klotting and Kalcium"
Health Benefits of Vitamin K
Health Benefits of Vitamin K
To understand how vitamin K helps fight disease, see:
Two vitamin
K-dependent "Star Players" - (1) OSTEOCALCIN and (2) MGP (Matrix GLA Protein)
K2 and
vitamin D protect blood vessels from calcificationAccording to vitamin K researcher Professor Cees
Vermeer:
"The
only mechanism for arteries to protect
themselves from calcification is via the vitamin K -dependent
protein MGP. MPG is the most powerful inhibitor of soft tissue calcification presently
known, but non-supplemented healthy adults are desufficient in vitamin
K to a level that 30 per cent of their MGP is synthesized in an inactive
form. So, protection against cardiovascular calcification is only 70% in the young,
healthy population, and this figure decreases at increasing age."
Vitamin K and
vitamin D increase MGP,
which protects blood vessels from calcification - In healthy
arteries, MGP functions as a powerful inhibitor
of calcification in arteries Optimal vitamin K
levels are needed to produce proper amounts of MGP to prevent arterial calcification
Shearer Role of vitamin K and Gla
proteins in the pathophysiology of osteoporosis and vascular calcification. MJ.Curr
Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care 2000 Nov;3(6):433-8
Dhore CR, Cleutjens JP, Lutgens E, et. al. Differential
expression of bone matrix regulatory proteins in human atherosclerotic plaques.
Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2001 Dec;21(12):1998-2003
Even a diet rich in leafy greens supplies less than half the
vitamin K needed for its calcium-regulating
activitie s.
Cranenburg EC, Schurgers LJ.
Thromb Haemost . 2007 Jul;98(1):120-5.
Evidence for K2 rather than
K1 for heart benefits
People who consume 45 mcg of K2
daily live seven years longer than people getting 12 mcg per day
- In the 2004 Rotterdam study, those in the highest third of vitamin
K2 intakes were 52% less likely to develop severe calcification of the arteries,
41% less likely to develop heart disease, and 57% less likely to die from it than
people with the lowest intake of vitamin K2 .
Geleijnse JM, Vermeer C, Grobbee
DE, Schurgers LJ, Knapen MHJ, van der Meer IM, Hofman A and Witteman JCM. "Dietary
intake of menaquinone is associated with a reduced risk of coronary heart disease:
The Rotterdam Study "November 2004; J Nutr
134:3100-3105
Researchers also found that each additional 10 mcg of
vitamin K2 in the diet resulted in 9% fewer cardiac events
K2 found to reduce incidence of heart attack
- in 2009, a Dutch dietary
study further analyzed data from the EPIC-Prospect study. Note that NO relationship
was found between K1 intake and heart attack incidence, suggesting poor bodily conversion
of K1 to K2 (all women were over 49 yrs old, which could be a relevant factor) .
Vitamin K2 , but not
K1 has been reported to decrease serum
cholesterol and cholesterol-ester deposition in the aorta -
contributing to the suppression of atherosclerotic plaque progression.
Graul, A., Castañer, J., 1996. Menatetrenone: Treatment
for osteoporosis. Drugs Future 21(6), 615-620.
Spronk, H.M., Soute, B.A., Schurgers, L.J., Thijssen,
H.H., De Mey, J.G., Vermeer, C., 2003. Tissue-specific utilization of menaquinone-4
results in the prevention of arterial calcification in warfarin-treated rats.
J. Vasc. Res. 40(6), 531-537.
Animal studies - show that vitamin K2
not only prevents hardening of the arteries but can actually reverse calcification
of highly calcified arteries, by activating MGP.
People with severe calcifications have high percentages of inactive OSTEOCALCIN
- which indicates a general deficiency of vitamin
K2 .
Taking Calcium to prevent osteoporosis WITHOUT
vitamin K increases risk of heart attack
by an average 149% whilst decreasing risk of fracture by only 12% -
According to 2008 randomized, controlled research published in British
Medical
1471 postmenopausal women taking calcium supplements also increased their risk of stroke an average of 142% and sudden
death 137%
Bolland MJ, Barber PA, Doughty RN, et al. Vascular events in healthy
older women receiving calcium supplementation: randomised controlled
trial. BMJ. 2008 Feb 2;336(7638):262-6.
An editorial accompanying the study entitled "Cardiovascular
risks of calcium supplements in women - Increased risk of myocardial
infarction outweighs the reduction in fractures" points out:
"Under certain stimuli, vascular
smooth muscle cells may undergo a phenotypic switch to bone-like cells,
and in the presence of high amounts of calcium these may be capable
of producing vascular calcification."
Jones G, Winzenberg T. BMJ. 2008 Feb 2;336(7638):226-7.
A footnote refers to the "certain
stimuli"as lack of sufficient vitamin K2, which
can cause the cells lining blood vessel walls to absorb calcium, like
bone cells.
Wallin R, Wajih N, et al. Arterial calcification: a review of mechanisms,
animal models, and the prospects for therapy. Med Res Rev. 2001 Jul;21(4):274-301
The long and short - Don't take calcium supplements
without concurrent intake of vitamin K1
(from eating such dark green leafy and cruciferous vegetables, although
older people seem to have a poor conversion of K1 to K2) and
a K2 supplement - also,
taking vitamin D increases calcium
absorption making vitamin K even more necessary
K1 with
vitamin D / High-dose
K2 can not only increase bone mineral density in those with osteoporosis
but also reduce fracture rates - according to human intervention studies.
Emerging evidence also supports that low dose K1 when combined
with vitamin D may also
benefit bone health. Proposed K mechanisms are:
Vitamin K's role in activation
(carboxylation) of OSTEOCALCIN - a hormone involved in bone mineralization
Vitamin K positively affects calcium balance - suggests
increasing evidence; calcium is a key mineral in bone metabolism.
Weber P.
Vitamin K and bone health .
Nutrition. 2001 Oct;17(10):880-7.
Supporting trials:
Japanese trials showed that vitamin K2
completely reverses bone loss - and in some cases even increases
bone density in people with osteoporosis.
Vermeer C, Shearer M J, Zitterman A, Bolton-Smith
C, Szulc P, Hodges S, Walter P, Rambeck W, Stocklin E, Weber P. "Beyond deficiency:
Potential benefits of increased intakes of vitamin K for bone and vascular
health"Eur J Nutr. December 2004;43(6):325-335
Seven pooled Japanese trials show that vitamin K2
supplementation produces a 60% reduction in vertebral fractures and an 80% reduction
in hip and other non-vertebral fractures
Cockayne S, Adamson J, Lanham-New S, Shearer MJ,
Gilbody S, Torgerson DJ. "Vitamin K and the prevention of fractures:
Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials"Arch
Intern Med . 2006; 166: 1256-1261
Cancer - K2 , but not K1 , reduces cancer risk
In the Prospect EPIC (European Prospective Investigation
into Cancer and Nutrition) study, 16,057 women (aged 49-70)
were followed for an average of 8.1 years
It was found that a high intake of
vitamin K2, but not
K1 ,
leads
to reduced cancer risk - and a 30% lower risk of dying from cancerstudy
data suggests that vitamin
K2 + vitamin D3 may be an effective
combination for differentiation-based therapy for leukemia and MDS)
Daniells S. " Vitamin
D may reduce cancer risk: EPIC study "Nutraingredients.com(March
30, 2010)
Nimptsch K, Rohrmann S, Kaaks R, and Linseisen J. "Dietary
vitamin K intake in relation to cancer incidence and mortality: Results from the
Heidelberg cohort of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition
(EPIC-Heidelberg) "Am J Clin Nutr (March 24, 2010)
Varicose Veins
New research shows that K2- dependently-activated
MGP is needed to prevent the excessive proliferation and mineralization of muscle
cells in the walls of the veins that ca uses varicose veins - Researchers
compared healthy veins from 36 male patients (aged 30 - 83) with varicose veins
from 50 male patients (aged40 - 81). High levels of uncarboxylated (inactive) MGP
and increased calcification were seen only in the varicose veins. When
vitamin K was added to cultures of small muscle cells from
the varicose veins, MGP was activated, stopping the mineralization process.
Cario-Toumaniantz C, Boularan C, Schurgers LJ, Heymann
MF, Le Cunff M, Léger J, Loirand G, Pacaud P. Identification of Differentially Expressed
Genes in Human Varicose Veins: Involvement of Matrix Gla Protein in Extracellular
Matrix Remodeling. J Vasc Res. 2007 Jul 20;44(6):444-459 [Epub ahead of print]
Abstract
vitamin K2 promotes
INSULIN sensitivityVitamin K -activated OSTEOCALCIN
( a hormone secreted by bone-buildingosteoblast cells) is directly involved
in the proliferation of INSULIN - producing
pancreatic β-cells - thus improving glucose tolerance and
INSULIN sensitivity.
No OSTEOCALCIN = Low INSULIN -
Mice genetically engineered to lack the genes expressed in osteoblasts that enable
OSTEOCALCIN secretion are unable to produce normal levels of pancreatic β-cells,
and become glucose intolerant and
INSULIN resistant. OSTEOCALCIN increases production of ADIPONECTIN, an
INSULIN -sensitizing hormone produced by fat cells
(adipocytes) - further improving INSULIN sensitivity
and glucose tolerance.
Lee NK, Sowa H, Hinoi E, Ferron M, Ahn JD, Confavreux
C, Dacquin R, Mee PJ, McKee MD, Jung DY, Zhang Z, Kim JK, Mauvais-Jarvis F, Ducy
P, Karsenty G. Endocrine regulation of energy metabolism by the skeleton. Cell.
2007 Aug 10;130(3):456-69.Abstract
Anti-Wrinkle Action
Vitamin K2-dependent activation of MGP plays a key role in protecting
skin elasticity by inhibiting calcium deposits in elastin fibers - smoothing
out lines and wrinkles.
Gheduzzi D, Boraldi F, et al.
Matrix Gla protein is involved in elastic fiber calcification in the dermis of pseudoxanthoma
elasticum patients . Lab Invest. 2007 Oct;87(10):998-1008.
Vitamin K2 protects nervesEvidence suggests that vitamin K2 plays a role as an
antioxidant within the cells that synthesize the
myelin sheath - which forms the electrical insulation of nerves.
Denisova NA, Booth SL. Vitamin
K and Sphingolipid Metabolism: Evidence to Date. Nutr
Rev . 2005; 63(4): 110-121.
