About Foods High in Vitamin K
- The best way to get Vitamin K is through what you eat in your diet or a good vitamin supplement. It is an important vitamin that transports calcium in the body. This means that it is important in helping maintain calcium in the bones. Vitamin K also helps the blood to clot properly so that you do not bleed excessively. It helps with the production in the body of a liver protein called thrombin. This is an important element in helping blood to clot. It helps with the formation and repair of bones preventing some serious diseases like osteoporosis that causes bone loss. Vitamin K helps process protein found in the kidney's and bones.
- The intestines can produce Vitamin K in the body. It helps if you eat yogurt or cultured milk in your diet. Vitamin K is a fat soluble vitamin that the body will absorb and deposit in the fatty tissue. You can take too much Vitamin K or not get enough. Vitamin K is produced naturally in some plants and is called phylloquinone. Another form is used by bacteria in the intestines and is called menaquinone. A third type is Vitamin K is produced by drug companies as a supplement. A lack of enough Vitamin K can result in nosebleeds and hemorrhaging. The recommended dosage for women is 90 micrograms and 120 for men.
- The types of food that contains Vitamin K varies. Green leafy vegetables have the highest content. They are spinach, Swiss chard, celery, broccoli, cabbage, spring onions and mustard greens. It is also found in beef and pork liver because the animals eat food that contains the vitamins. Foods with a moderate amount of Vitamin K are red cabbage, avocados, dill pickles, cucumbers, peas and plums. Foods with the lowest amount of Vitamin K are tomatoes, blueberries, apricots, navy beans, peaches, bananas and some other fruits. Certain oils contain more vitamin K such as canola, soybean, cottonseed and olive oil. So use these oils if you are trying to get more Vitamin K in your diet. It is important to eat a wide variety of food with vitamin K with different levels so you get other vitamins and nutrients in your diet.
- The best way to get Vitamin K is through raw fruits and vegetables. Fresh salads with spinach, and other vegetables that contain Vitamin K are an excellent way to digest the vitamin. Fresh fruit sliced and eaten fresh is another source. Because beef or pork liver contains Vitamin K the best way to cook beef or pork liver is to roast or fry it. This preserves the vitamins in the food. Cooking vegetables by steaming them is the best way to retain the vitamins. Follow some of these tips to get the most Vitamin K from the food you choose to eat. If you boil vegetable in water save the water to use in soups or stews.
- A deficiency in Vitamin K can result in nose bleeds and internal hemorrhaging. An overdose in Vitamin K, or taking too much, can result in sweating and flushing. Other problems from too much Vitamin K are anemia and jaundice. So it important to try to take the proper amount not take too much. Those on special medications should consult their doctors before taking supplements or eating a diet high in Vitamin K. They can advise you on the proper amount needed to work with specific medications like warafin or Coumadin.
