Supplements & functional ingredients
“There is scientific evidence that poor vitamin K status is associated with low bone mineral density and increased fracture risk,” says Katarzyna Maresz, president of the International Science and Health Foundation, who also runs a website dedicated to the lesser-known vitamin. “Vitamin K2 is essential for the body to optimally utilise calcium, which is necessary to build healthy, strong bones,” Maresz continues. “K2 activates a protein called osteocalcin that binds calcium ions to the bone mineral matrix, thus strengthening the skeleton. But without adequate vitamin K intake, osteocalcin remains inactive, and calcium is not directed to create stronger bones.” In clinical trials, the efficacy of vitamin K2 supplementation to support strong bones has been clearly proven. For example, a three-year study of vitamin K2 in the form of menaquinone-7, which involved 244 healthy postmenopausal women – a high-risk group for the bone-weakening condition osteporosis – indicated that vitamin K2 supplementation positively influenced bone mineral content and bone mineral density. Moreover, bone strength was statistically improved, demonstrating clear therapeutic benefits for the K2 group. Furthermore, vitamin K2 in the form of Menatetrenone, also known as MK4, has been approved for the treatment of osteoporosis in Japan since 1995. Maresz also points to further clinical trials where the combination of menaquinone-7 vitamin K2 and vitamin D was proven to have a beneficial effect on bone mineral density in children with thalassemic osteopathy. Indeed, in the 2013 paper, ‘The efficacy of vitamin K2 and calcitriol combination on thalassemic osteopathy’, researchers found that survival rates and life expectancy of patients suffering from thalassemia major – one of a group of inherited conditions that affect haemoglobin – was significantly increased.
Healing for the heart
Health-conscious consumers are starting to recognise that vitamin K2 is essential for the body to support strong bones and healthy joints. What is less well known is its role in cardiovascular health. “There are many new health areas that have been connected with vitamin K2, among them brain health, metabolic status, and even dental health,” observes Maresz. “Calcium is an important nutrient for bone health, however, recent scientific evidence suggests that elevated consumption of calcium supplements may raise the risk for heart disease and can be connected with accelerated deposit of calcium in blood-vessel walls and soft tissues. As Maresz explains, K2 could be an antidote to heart problems because it is associated with
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inhibiting “arterial calcification and arterial stiffening”, meaning it could lower “calcium- associated health risks”. In her 2015 paper ‘Proper Calcium Use:
Vitamin K2 as a Promoter of Bone and Cardiovascular Health’, Maresz reports that adequate intake of vitamin K2 has been shown to lower the risk of vascular damage because it activates matrix GLA protein, which inhibits the deposits of calcium on the walls. She also notes that vitamin K, particularly as vitamin K2, is nearly non-existent in junk food, with little being consumed even in a healthy Western diet. As a result, vitamin K deficiency frequently results in inadequate activation of MGP, which greatly impairs the process of calcium removal and increases the risk of calcification of the blood vessels.
“There are many new health areas that have been connected with vitamin K2, among them brain health, metabolic status, and even dental health.”
“Results from clinical trials have confirmed that vitamin K2 is cardioprotective,” she says. “In the study published in 2015 in Thrombosis and Haemostasis, researchers showed that menaquinone-7 not only inhibited age-related stiffening of the artery walls, but also made a statistically significant improvement of vascular elasticity.”
An elastic artery is a conducting or conduit artery with many collagen and elastin filaments in the tunica media, which gives it the ability to stretch in response to each pulse. Vascular elasticity is important for a healthy heart, as it reduces the risk of high blood pressure – a key risk factor for heart attacks and strokes. “Many epidemiological studies also showed that vitamin K2 is cardioprotective and one study even stated that vitamin K2 intake was inversely correlated with early cardiovascular death to the same degree that tobacco use was positively correlated.” In other words, taking K2 supplements could be as beneficial for the heart as quitting smoking. Yet that is not where the benefits of K2 end. It has also been shown to have a powerful anti-inflammatory effect. Inflammation is part of the body’s natural healing process and is often a sign that a person is fighting off an infection. Unfortunately, the inflammatory effect can go into overdrive, causing an acute or chronic condition in which the body is damaging healthy cells, tissues and organs. Left unchecked, this can ultimately cause damage to DNA. “It has been shown that low vitamin K status is correlated with a higher status of inflammatory
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