I have read in a magazine that there are several types of vitamin K. According to the article, Vitamin K1 is found in vegetables. Vitamin K2 mk7 is found in meat, fish and eggs. The article also said that Vitamin K1 is stored in the liver for only one hour, time not enough to perform all its tasks. On the contrary, vitamin k2 mk7 would stay in the liver for the whole day. So my question is: should vegetarians take supplements of vitamin k2 mk7 (created from natto)?
vjimener / Originally posted below Better than green tea?
Answer:
Not sure what magazine you were reading, but the scientific consensus is that either one (phylloquinone or menaquinone, formerly K1 and K2) is fine for maintaining human vitamin K status. The recommended intake is about 100 mcg. A half cup of kale? >500. No need for natto; just eat your greens.
In fact dark green leafies are so packed with vitamin K that if you’re on the drug coumadin (warfarin), a drug that works by poisoning vitamin K metabolism, you have to closely work with your physician to titrate the dose to your greens intake so as to not undermine the drug’s effectiveness!
Learn more about the wonders of greens in my greens videos (like Eating Green to Prevent Cancer) and kale in particular in videos such as Smoking Versus Kale Juice and Kale and the Immune System.
Image credit: ilovemypit / Flickr
