There’s a new health sheriff in town and his name is vitamin K2. The latest addition to the burgeoning supplement market, it assists in reducing the debilitating effects of a number of health conditions. If you’re surprised you haven’t heard of it, that’s because the healthcare world is still latching on to its many benefits. In fact, vitamin K2 was only approved by the governing Therapeutic Goods Administration in October of 2014.
As a result, just a handful of companies have released supplements containing the vitamin. But this number will no doubt continue to increase as awareness of the product does. For the benefit of consumers and creators alike, BD has spoken to the experts to break down the details of the latest health hero.
In short, vitamin K2 is a supplement similar to vitamin K1, which is found in leafy greens like kale, broccoli and spinach. Swisse naturopath Toby Hone calls it the “forgotten vitamin” as K2 was only created by converting vitamin K1 via the gut bacteria of animals.
The International Health and Science Foundation explained the science behind the supplement: “Part of the K family of vitamins, vitamin K2 is a fat-soluble vitamin that helps the body efficiently utilise calcium. By activating different K-dependent proteins, it directs calcium toward bones and away from the arteries.”
“We may be familiar with its role for blood clotting (remember those injections for newborns!). However, it’s been discovered that vitamin K does a whole lot more, such as helping with bone density and even cardiovascular health,” says Hone.
Isabella Truong, a part of the Naturopathic Advisory Service continues: “Vitamin K is crucial for the production of proteins that we need for blood clotting. Without vitamin K, we would not stop bleeding. It is involved in bone formation and repair, and supports the deposit of calcium into bones and bone mineralisation.”
This ability to assist with boosting and maintaining calcium levels in the body means vitamin K2 is a good ally to have in the battle against two of the most common and debilitating diseases affecting our community: osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease.
For Dr Dennis Goodman, who penned Vitamin K2: The Missing Nutrient for Heart & Bone Health on the topic, the vitamin has the credentials to become more mainstream.
“Although vitamin K2 is a relative newcomer to the supplement arena, I believe there is now enough evidence to make you take notice and add it to your list of essential nutrients. A multitude of studies have been conducted proving vitamin K2’s effectiveness in three categories: cardiovascular health, bone health and children’s health. What got my attention was a recently published study showing that vitamin K2 supplementation reduced arterial stiffness in healthy post-menopausal women.”
As to why it is worth popping a vitamin K supplement, it is simple. Hone explains: “humans have never directly produced vitamin K, we have always relied upon external sources, such as plants, animals and fermented foods.”
Unfortunately, changing diets, growing disinterest in dairy-rich products and a change in farming practices has meant vitamin K2 is now not so easy to procure as it once was.
Truong says: “Vitamin K in all forms is difficult to obtain in the food we eat.” Dr Dennis Goodman blames the Western world and our agricultural processe, saying in his book: “Yes you can get vitamin K1 in broccoli, spinach and kale, however, changes in agriculture and food manufacturing – such as fewer grass-fed animals and more processed foods – means that vitamin K2 is not readily available in the food supply, or, it is in inadequate amounts.”
Hone agrees, stating: “The levels of vitamin K in our diet can be unreliable, as it depends on the amount of green leafies, animal products and fermented food we eat - and even the health of our gut flora!”
This is why for both Hone and Goodman, supplements are the easiest and most effective way to ensure the body is absorbing adequate levels of the vitamin. Hone concludes: “In general, capsules are more easily absorbed than tablets, but both forms are suitable ways to take this vitamin.”
