Vitamin K Foods And Why They Are Important
We need vitamin K for bone growth and repair; it works along with vitamin A and vitamin D to do this.
Chlorophyll is a rich source of vitamin K, so if you feel you are not getting enough foods with vitamin K, take wheat grass. It is also an anti aging supplement, and is packed full of vitamins as well as chlorophyll.
Vitamin K is highest in green leafy vegetables, and is found in many other foods such as: brussels sprouts, broccoli, cabbage, parsley, cauliflower, carrots, spinach, lettuce, leaks, watercress, green beans, peas, apples, eggplant, cereals, collard, turnip greens, onions, spring onions, scallions, asparagus, alfalfa, kelp, nettle and green tea.
Vitamin K is also needed for blood coagulation (another term for blood clotting, where bleeding is stopped in the body). Abnormal or internal bleeding would result, if this vitamin were not present in our bodies.
The amount required daily is very small, around 70 – 140 micrograms for adults and around 15 – 100 micrograms for children and adolescents. (1 million micrograms = 1 gram), so you can see the amount we need is rather small.
It is classed as a fat-soluble vitamin, meaning it can be stored in the body, and able to dissolve in the body fat. Other vitamins classed as fat-soluble are vitamin A, D and E.
At this moment there are only a small amount of researchers studying the effects of vitamin K, and they are discovering more and more important functions it has on the body.
It has been found to activate at least three proteins for bone health.
In this day and age, where beating the aging process and looking younger, has now become something many people are conscious of; vitamin K is finding a following.
It has been discovered to help prevent osteoporosis, disease which weakens the bones. This was once believed to be calcium’s job.
Besides being available in a variety of foods, our intestine’s bacteria produce vitamin K as well. Therefore it has been uncommon to have deficiencies in vitamin K.
People who have been known to have a deficiency are those whose bodies do not absorb fats properly.
This can be sufferers of cystic fibrosis or liver diseases, and people who have been on antibiotics for a long period of time, as these drugs destroy the bacteria in the intestine, where vitamin K is produced.
If you are suffering from a deficiency, what happens is, your blood does not coagulate normally. This means bleeding is prolonged and could lead to hemorrhages, or severe blood clotting.
Vitamin K has also been known to help prevent certain cancers which affect the inner linings of the organs. It helps the intestines aid in changing glucose into glycogen (carbohydrate), to promote healthy liver function.
Some companies use vitamin K in eye and wrinkle creams, to help erase wrinkles. Check out article on ‘dark circles under eyes’, if you have this problem the vitamin K in eye creams, has been found to help considerably lesson dark circles.
People with a liver disease may require a greater intake of vitamin K.
It can be taken in a supplement and is found in some multivitamins.
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