Vitamin K uses, deficiency and food sources

Vitamin K uses, deficiency and food sources

Vitamin K is a class of fat-soluble chemicals. Vitamin K has been demonstrated to be an anti-calcification, anticancer, bone-forming, and insulin-sensitizing chemical. Vitamin K aids in the formation of blood clots (a mass formed when blood platelets, proteins, and cells clump together) and the maintenance of healthy bones. It's fat-soluble (it dissolves in fats and oils) and can be found in green leafy vegetables, broccoli, liver, and vegetable oils. Bacteria in the large intestine also produce vitamin K. A lack of vitamin K can result in bleeding and bruising.

Adults require around 1 microgram of vitamin K per kilogram of body weight per day. For example, A person weighing 55kg needs 55 mg of vitamin K per day.

Vitamin K: Risk Factors

Adults are more likely to suffer from vitamin K deficiency and the related symptoms if they:

• Use blood thinners, also known as anticoagulants, which prevent clots but decrease vitamin K activation (Warfarin)
• Take antibiotics that inhibit vitamin K production and absorption.
• Don't get enough vitamin K from their diets
• Take excessively high dosages of vitamin A or E
• Vitamin K Deficiency
• Adult vitamin K insufficiency is uncommon, although it can occur in people who use drugs that inhibit vitamin K metabolism, such as antibiotics, or in people who have diseases that induce malabsorption of food and minerals. If newborns are not given vitamin K supplements, their inadequate supply of blood clotting proteins at birth increases their risk of bleeding.
• Blood Clotting: Some people have blood clotting issues due to low vitamin K in their bodies. They must take warfarin to keep their blood from clotting too quickly.
• Bone Well-being: Many specialists believe that vitamin K activates proteins that are necessary for bone formation and development. Low vitamin K levels increase the risk of bone fractures.
• Cardiovascular Health: Vitamin K activates a protein that aids in the prevention of calcium deposits in the arteries. These calcium deposits contribute to plaque formation, so it's hardly unexpected that they're a powerful predictor of heart disease.

Vitamin K Symptoms of Deficiency

Vitamin K deficiency is connected with a number of symptoms-

• Excessive bleeding: Excessive bleeding may not be immediately apparent because it may occur only if the person receives a cut.
• Bruising easily
• Little blood clots develop under the nails
• Bleeding in mucous membranes
• Dark black, tar-like, bloody stools.
• Haemorrhaging
• Osteopenia and osteoporosis

Vitamin K sources and functions

• Green Leafy Vegetables: Collard, turnip greens, kale, spinach, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, and lettuce
• Canola and soybean oil
• Cereals Grains
• Dressings for salads made using soybean or canola oil
• Meal replacement smoothies with added nutrients
• Fermented Soybeans
• Meat, cheese, and eggs
• Chickpeas
• Blueberries and figs
• Green tea

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Why Vitamin K is given to new-borns?
Vitamin K deficiency can cause severe bleeding in newborns and infants that's why Vitamin K supplements are given at birth to protect against this bleeding.

Q. Are potassium and Vitamin K the same?
Vitamin K and potassium are essential micronutrients that the body requires for proper development and body functioning. They have certain similarities, but each has a distinct set of properties and functions. Unlike Vitamin K potassium is a mineral.

Q. Does Vitamin K regulate blood sugar levels?
Yes! Vitamin K supplementation improves insulin sensitivity and glucose tolerance thus it prevents insulin resistance and lowers the incidence of type2 diabetes.

Q. Can vitamin K be called an Anti-coagulant?
Vitamin K antagonists (VKAs) are technically a misnomer because the medications do not directly antagonize vitamin K action in the pharmacological sense, but rather by vitamin K recycling. It is used as an anticoagulant drug in the prevention of thrombosis, as well as rodenticides in pest control.

Q. How Vitamin K2 is different from Vitamin K1?
The primary purpose of all forms of vitamin K is to activate proteins that play critical roles in blood clotting, heart health, and bone health.

Vitamin K1 is found mostly in plant foods such as leafy green vegetables whereas Vitamin K2 is found in fermented foods and animal products, as well as in gut microbes.

Q. How vitamin K is connected with the treatment of Covid19?
There is a direct link between vitamin K deficiency and COVID-19 severity implying that vitamin K plays a role through coagulation regulation. Medical trials have confirmed that Anticoagulant therapy can lower mortality in severe patients of COVID-19.

Ghar ka Baidya is dedicated to provide you all skin related issues solutions in the best possible manner and suitable time. We focus on deliver high quality content generally on demand. if you like this article, please write to us. If you need coverage on specific skin topic, let us know. In severe condition, we would recommend you to consult to the respective doctor(s).