Vitamin K and the coronavirus

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Vitamin D seems to reduce the effect of coronavirus on individuals, wearing masks in public drastically reduces infection rates, air pollution worsens the impact.  Now Vitamin K has been shown to reduce death rates.

From The Guardian:

Patients who have died or been admitted to intensive care with Covid-19 have been found to be deficient in a vitamin found in spinach, eggs, and hard and blue cheeses, raising hopes that dietary change might be one part of the answer to combating the disease.

Researchers studying patients who were admitted to the Canisius Wilhelmina hospital in the Dutch city of Nijmegen have extolled the benefits of vitamin K after discovering a link between deficiency and the worst coronavirus outcomes.

Covid-19 causes blood clotting and leads to the degradation of elastic fibres in the lungs. Vitamin K, which is ingested through food and absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract, is key to the production of proteins that regulate clotting and can protect against lung disease.

The Dutch researchers are now seeking funding for a clinical trial, but Dr Rob Janssen, a scientist working on the project, said that in light of the initial findings he would encourage a healthy intake of vitamin K, except to those on blood-thinning medications such as warfarin.

[Read more here]

Vitamin K is present in a variety of foodstuffs, but is especially abundant in kale, collard greens and broccoli.  You need about 100 mcg (micrograms) of Vit K  per day, and if you eat a bad diet, you can take it as a supplement.


WARNING: If you are taking blood-thinning medication such as warfarin, do not take Vitamin K supplements without consulting a doctor first.