Vitamin K2

What is Vitamin K2?

Vitamin K, which is actually a group of vitamins, plays an important role in blood clotting. The 'K' stands for 'Koagulation', the German word for 'coagulation', which is the process where our blood changes from a liquid to a gel.

There are two forms of Vitamin K: Vitamin K1 (phylloquinone), found in lots of plant foods, and the less common Vitamin K2 (menaquinone), found in some fermented foods, such as natto (fermented soya beans), and in some animal foods. Vitamin K2 is also commonly missing from many supplement powders and meal replacement shakes.

What does Vitamin K2 do?

Vitamin K contributes to normal blood clotting, by activating proteins involved in that process.

Vitamin K does more than help our blood clot: Vitamin K contributes to the maintenance of normal bones. There are at least three Vitamin K-dependent proteins found in our bones. Researchers have looked at Vitamin K and bone metabolism, and a review looked at trials of Vitamin K supplementation and bone.

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