We’ve heard some talk about Vitamin D’s effects in combating COVID-19, but Vitamin K? Yes, this is new.
Recent research concluded that optimizing vitamin D levels reduced the fatality rate of COVID-19. The addition of K2 and magnesium prevent long-term health risk.
The clinical findings demonstrate:
* Vitamin D serum levels correlate with mortality rate of COVID-19 patients. Low levels resulted in poor outcomes.
* The majority of the Western population is vitamin D deficient.
* Vitamin D3 supplementation also requires additional vitamin K2 intake as these fat-soluble vitamins work together. K2 helps drive calcium to the right places—bones and teeth—and away from tissues, organs and arteries where it can calcify and cause issues, such as atherosclerosis.
Netherland scientists have looked further into K2’s role in combating Coronavirus. They’ve found that those deficient in vitamin K have had more serious outcomes. It’s even now speculated that supplementing with vitamin K2 could be an important piece of the prevention puzzle.
Although there is no claimed cure for COVID-19 and supplements cannot claim to prevent, cure or treat any disease, the preliminary research is compelling.
The fact that elevated levels of vitamin D provide better outcomes is evident in 22 clinical studies, also showing that deficiency is associated with worse outcomes. This new study, however, is now pointing to vitamin K deficiency and its link to more severe COVID-19 outcomes, particularly those with co-morbidities such as diabetes, heart disease, pulmonary disease and hypertension, which are already associated with low vitamin K levels.
Low vitamin K levels can cause tissue fibers to breakdown, which is a symptom of pulmonary disease. It’s been evidenced that patients with severe COVID-19 symptoms are utilizing bodily stores of vitamin K to help protect and repair damaged fibers in the lungs.
Another connection found in these preliminary studies is patients with severe COVID-19 symptoms and coagulopathy, a bleeding disorder that impairs the formation of blood clots. A complication related to this disorder is thromboembolism, where blood clots become dislodged and block blood vessels. Here is the interesting part—Vitamin K is known for its ability to dissolve blood clots.
The observational study involved 123 COVID-19 patients and 184 in the control group. Vitamin K levels were much lower in the COVID-19 patients compared to the control group.
Vitamin K2 activates certain proteins, such as MGP (Matrix Gla protein), which is an inhibitor of vascular calcification, and there is evidence that it also protects elastic fibers of the lungs. Since vitamin K2 activates MGP, it’s providing the lungs with this additional protection.
NattoPharma is the creator of the most widely studied brand of vitamin K2, MenaQ-7, with 19 published clinical studies on the brand.
So, can supplementing with K2 prevent this from occurring? Can it help protect the lungs from further damage? This appears to be, at minimum, the ah-ha moment of this observational study. A connection may exist between low vitamin K levels, the breakdown of lung tissue fibers and correspondingly low MGP levels.
According to Hogne Vik, chief medical officer at NattoPharma, “Supplementation of vitamin K increases the vitamin K status in the body as measured by the level of active vitamin K-dependent proteins, and vitamin K2 is clearly the best form of vitamin K due to its superior bioactivity. MGP is the most potent known inhibitor of vascular calcification to date. MGP is a K-dependent protein already present in the body, but it needs adequate vitamin K2 to be activated to perform its function.”
Leo Schurgers, Professor of Biochemistry of Vascular Calcification and Vice Chair of Biochemistry at the Cardiovascular Research Institute Maastricht (CARIM) and co-author of the study, states: “While we do not suggest vitamin K2 is a treatment for COVID-19, this study illustrates that a poor vitamin K status is linked to a poor prognosis. Thus, we are hypothesizing that improving vitamin K2 status is linked to better health outcomes including cardiovascular, and perhaps even lung health.”
Our Vegan D3+K2 provides 3-IN-1-SUPPORT! We formulated vegan Vitamin D3 along with two essential forms of K2 (MK-4 + MK-7).
Vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium, while Vitamin K2 helps the body ensure that calcium is properly utilized (i.e., that it is ending up in the bones and not in the heart and blood vessels). Vitamin K2 keeps calcium in bones and teeth and out of soft tissues.
MenaQ7® (MK-7) in the ONLY PURE and BIOACTIVE ‘TRANS’ form. Most supplements contain a blend of TRANS and CIS forms. CIS MK-7 is not nature-identical (a form not found in nature) and is therefore limited in activity and benefit. MK-4 is produced from a product called gerinol, which is from the geranium flower. Our MK-4 product is very high quality and is all trans make up.
Our Vegan ADK provides the same vegan D3 and MK-4 and MK-7 in our Vegan D3+K2 PLUS the addition of "micellized" vitamin A ((palmitate and betacarotene) to increase its absorption rate. Vitamin A is important to immune function.
Don’t forget to supplement with magnesium! Vitamin D requires magnesium for its own absorption. Men require approximately 400 mg of magnesium a day; women need about 250-300 mg a day. But not all forms of magnesium are the same--be sure you choose a bioavailable form!
Our Optimum Magnesium contains two bioavailable forms of magnesium--magnesium glycinate and magnesium malate.
Sources:
https://www.newhope.com/vitamins-and-supplements/vitamin-k-levels-linked-covid-19-outcomes
https://www.foxnews.com/health/vitamin-k-coronavirus-pandemic-should-you-take-it
https://www.newfoodmagazine.com/news/112546/prunes/
https://www.ijidonline.com/article/S1201-9712(20)30624-X/fulltext
https://www.statesman.com/opinion/20200701/dear-dietitian-exploring-impact-of-vitamin-k-on-covid-19
https://www.ijidonline.com/article/S1201-9712(20)30624-X/fulltext