K2 — vegansk

Vitamin K2 activates the protein osteocalcin, which ensures that calcium salts are deposited in the bones so that it does not end up in the blood vessels. Vitamin K2 thus contributes to maintaining a healthy bone structure.

In recent years, a number of studies have been carried out, all of which have contributed to increasing the understanding of vitamin K2's importance. A Japanese study by " Kaneki et al" has demonstrated a connection between the intake of natto (menaquinone-7) and the blood content of vitamin K2 and a reduced number of hip fractures. Well-documented research shows that vitamin K2 promotes calcium deposition in the bones, and can therefore be beneficial for people with brittle bones.

Double effect with vitamin K2
Studies carried out over the past 30 years have also shown that vitamin K2 (menaquinone-7) strengthens the binding of calcium in the bones at the same time that it removes calcium from the walls of blood vessels. This phenomenon is called the calcium paradox. In addition to activating the protein osteocalcin , vitamin K2 also activates the protein Matrix GLA Protein (MGP), which is the most important of the known factors that prevent calcification of the blood vessels. Vitamin K2 therefore ensures that the calcium the body receives either through diet or nutritional supplements is deposited in the right place in the body, where it does good and not harm. By reducing the calcification of the blood vessel walls, the blood vessels are also made more flexible.

A brand new Dutch clinical trial has shown that healthy women in the age group both during and after menopause achieve 50% less stiffness in, and less calcification of, the blood vessels when consuming 180 mcg of vitamin K2 per day.*

Bone mass is created in the young years
A 2-year study has shown that vitamin K2 intake in children also results in stronger bones in the form of a denser bone mass. Vitamin K2 works, as I said, by activating the protein osteocalcin, which is necessary to bind calcium to the bone mass. Vitamin K2 is therefore particularly important for both children and young people, as the body's bone mass is densest when we approach the end of our 20s. After this, the density of the bone mass gradually decreases. It is therefore about building up a dense bone mass in the young years, so that we have something to eat well into our years. Most people's bones start decalcifying already when they turn 30.

Where is vitamin K2 found?
Menaquinone-7 is one of the most bioavailable forms of natural vitamin K2. It is produced either from natto, a traditional Japanese soy product that the Japanese have eaten for centuries due to its health-promoting properties, or via a synthesis process based on the bacterial culture Bacillus subtilis (natto). Natural natto consists of cooked, fermented (fermented) soybeans, which are wrapped in rice leaves. Vitamin K2 is also found in foods such as egg yolks, meat and cheese, but to reach the effective 45 mcg - 90 mcg of vitamin K2 per day, an unrealistically large amount of these foods is needed. Therefore, many people, both adults and children, are deficient in vitamin K2.

*Cees Vermeer, et al., "Menaquinone-7 supplementation improves arterial stiffness in healthy postmenopausal women", Netherlands, Thromb Haemost, 2015