The Advantage Of Vitamin D3 and Vitamin K2 Together

Vitamin D3 and Vitamin K2 together can make a powerful team.

Vitamin K is made up of a group of compounds most important of which are vitamin K1 and vitamin K2.  Vitamin K1 is found in leafy green and other vegetables like spinach, asparagus and broccoli, strawberries and soybeans and beans, while vitamin K2 is mostly found in meats, cheeses, and eggs and are synthesized by bacteria. Vitamin K helps in blood clots thus preventing excessive bleeding and is also used to counteract an overdose of blood thinner. Though uncommon, one can be at high risk of vitamin K deficiency if you are severely malnourished, have a disease that affects absorption in the digestive tract, take drugs that interfere with its absorption and if you are a heavy alcohol drinker.

Vitamin D is a vitamin that can be found in small amounts in foods such as fatty fish, sardines and tuna, and are added to dairy products juices and cereals. However, the most vitamin D that the body gets is through exposure to sunlight or a safe tanning bed. The main use of  vitamin D is for the prevention  and treatment of rickets, for treatment of weak bones, bone pain, bones loss, and the prevention of fall and fractures in people at risk for osteoporosis and prevention of low calcium and bone loss in people with kidney failure. Vitamin D is also used for the regulation of the mineral levels such as phosphorous and calcium and for boosting the immune system for prevention of autoimmune diseases and cancer.

One needs both vitamins in adequate amount to obtain optimal health. Both vitamin K2 and Vitamin D3 are essential for the enhancement of osteocalcin accumulation in bone cells and improve bone mineral density. Osteocalcin is a bone-building protein that helps maintain the stable condition of calcium in the bone tissue. Together, it produces and activates Matrix GLA Protein (MGP) which is an important substance found around the elastic fiber of your arterial lining. This protein helps protect against the formation of calcium crystals that can lead to arterial calcification. In the case of a heart attack, when soft tissues are damaged, calcium is deposited into the damaged tissue and when it occurs in the blood vessels, you will have coronary artery disease or buildup of plaque that can lead to a heart attack. In which case, both vitamin K and vitamin D work together to increase the MGP and so protects your blood vessels from calcification.

In the case of joint spaces, while vitamin D improves bone development by helping absorb calcium, vitamin K2 prevents it from being deposited where you don’t want it and so directs the calcium to your skeleton. Taking vitamin D and vitamin K2 is necessary to complete the job of getting the calcium where it is supposed to be.

Excessive intake of calcium alone can be harmful to the body.  The function of vitamin D is to enhance calcium absorption but it must be consumed with vitamin K2 to regulate and correctly utilized the calcium so as not be directed to wrong places and eventually cause disease.