Can You Believe the Results Of These Vitamin K2 Studies?
In the past few years, I’ve probably written more about vitamin K-2 than I have any other vitamin.
Or, for that matter, any other nutrient.
There are a few reasons for my intense focus on vitamin K-2. The first is because the vast majority of Americans are deficient in vitamin K-2. This is an issue, as vitamin K-2 is essential in keeping your heart healthy as well as improving the health of your bones.
Vitamin K-2 also helps to improve blood sugar levels so they remain in the healthy range.
And vitamin K-2 has also been shown to boost immune function.
Today, I want to direct your attention to another incredible benefit of vitamin K-2.
Harnessing this unique power of K-2 could drastically improve your health.
I’m talking about vitamin K-2 and how it helps to improve your body’s response to low-level inflammation.
K-2 Helps Support a Healthy Inflammatory Response
If you’re not sure why improving your body’s response to inflammation is important then I suggest you take a look at this article I wrote on the subject.
Simply put, if you can improve how your body responds to inflammation then it means you’ll be able to resist the damage inflammation could wreak on the body.
Recent studies around vitamin K-2 indicate it has the power to improve how your body responds to low-levels of inflammation.
Norwegian researchers conducted a study and determined the introduction of vitamin K-2 could help inhibit the production of several pro-inflammatory biomarkers.
After administering vitamin K-2 MK7 the researchers observed the biomarkers TNF-a, IL-1a, and IL-1b (all pro-inflammatory biomarkers) were kept in check by the vitamin K-2.
By improving the body’s response to these biomarkers the researchers concluded this action would further protect the heart.
One of the primary functions that K-2 exhibits on the heart is it helps to pull calcium out of the bloodstream and into the bones and teeth. But according to the study, “[this effect], is significant because it confirms another mechanism by which vitamin K-2 supports cardiovascular health by impact markers of inflammation.”
Another study out of the Czech Republic confirmed those findings.
In this study, K-2 shows to help modulate how the immune system’s white blood cells react to potentially inflammatory material in the body.
Remember, inflammation is an immune response to what the body believes are potentially harmful invaders.
In this study, researchers discovered the introduction of vitamin K-2 MK7 helps to improve your white blood cells’ activation of pro-inflammatory markers called monocytes. By improving this response your body keeps inflammatory biomarkers within the healthy range.
What happens when your white blood cells produce a healthy number of monocytes?
To Improve Your Response to Inflammation
You Need the Right Kind Of Vitamin K-2
I feel as if I might be beating a dead horse here.
However, it’s critical to know if you want to take vitamin K-2 to help improve how your body responds to inflammation… or simply want to get the most out of vitamin K-2 in general, you need to consume the right kind of K-2.
There are two forms of K-2 found on store shelves.
Vitamin K-2 MK4 and Vitamin K-2 MK7. The two studies featured above both used MK7, and for good reason.
Vitamin K-2 MK7 is the superior source of vitamin K-2.
Here’s how Dr, Mercola defines the two.
- MK-4 is a synthetic product, very similar to vitamin K1, and your body is capable of converting K1 into MK-4. However, MK-4 has a very short biological half-life of about one hour, making it a poor candidate as a dietary supplement. After reaching your intestines, it remains mostly in your liver, where it is useful in synthesizing blood-clotting factors.
- MK-7 is a newer agent with more practical applications because it stays in your body longer; its half-life is three days, meaning you have a much better chance of building up a consistent blood level, compared to MK-4 or K1. MK-7 is extracted from the Japanese fermented soy product called natto. You could actually get loads of MK-7 from consuming natto, as it is relatively inexpensive and is available in most Asian food markets. Few Americans, however, tolerate its smell and slimy texture.
This is why I strongly discourage you from taking an MK4 supplement.
Vitamin K-2 MK4 is not going to help bring you the results you want to see and will ultimately be a drain on your wallet.
Vitamin K-2 MK7 only costs a little bit more, and is far better for altering your health.
What’s the Best Way to Get Vitamin K-2 MK7?
Here’s another dead horse I need to beat.
Talking about the best place to get vitamin K-2 MK7.
Over and over again I recommend you get it from diet.
As many as 98% of Americans (or westerners in general) are deficient in vitamin K-2 because our diet doesn’t contain rich sources of K-2.
Not only does our new, standard diet leave us deficient in K-2, it leaves us with a plethora of other nutritional deficiencies.
The top dietary sources of vitamin K-2 are as follows.
So that means, to hit optimal levels, you’re going to need to eat a consistent amount of these foods day in and day out.
All portions are 3.5 oz.
- Natto – 1,103.4 mcg – (90% MK-7, 10% other MK)
- Goose liver pâté – 369.0 mcg – (100% MK-4)
- Hard cheeses (Dutch Gouda style) – 76.3 mcg – (6% MK-4, 94% other MK)
- Soft cheeses (French Brie style) – 56.5 mcg – (6.5% MK-4, 93.5% other MK)
- Egg yolk (Netherlands) – 32.1mcg – (98% MK-4, 2% other MK)
- Goose leg – 31.0 mcg – (100% MK-4)
- Egg yolk (U.S.) – 15.5 mcg – (100% MK-4)
- Butter – 15.0 mcg – (100% MK-4)
- Chicken liver (raw) – 14.1 mcg – (100% MK-4)
- Chicken liver (pan-fried) – 12.6 mcg – (100% MK-4)
- Cheddar cheese (U.S.) – 10.2 mcg – (6% MK-4, 94% other MK)
- Meat franks – 9.8 mcg – (100% MK-4)
Looking over that list you probably noticed that most dietary sources of vitamin K-2 are MK4.
This poses a problem for those wishing to balance out K-2 levels because it requires that you eat a diet extremely high in those foods to get the K-2 you need.
This is why I recommend supplementing with vitamin K-2 MK7.
In the past year or two we’ve discovered 175 mcg is the best dose.
We’ve also discovered that many of the forms of K-2 sold in stores degrade over time.
That’s why I work with a company called Kappa Labs to give you a more stable, longer lasting K-2 called K2-Vital. This one won’t degrade over time and guarantees potency.
At this time, Health As It Ought To Be is one of the few companies in the world to use K2-Vital in our formula.
Best of all is you can get it for the price of the competitor’s K-2 that doesn’t carry it.
To snag your own and to start experiencing all the amazing benefits of vitamin K-2 click here or on the image below.