Vitamin K

Vitamin K is a nutrient that the body needs in small amounts to function and stay healthy. Vitamin K helps to form blood clots (a mass that forms when blood platelets, proteins, and cells stick together) and maintain strong bones. It is fat-soluble (can dissolve in fats and oils) and is found in green leafy vegetables, broccoli, liver, and vegetable oils. Vitamin K is also made by bacteria that live in the large intestine. Not enough vitamin K can lead to bleeding and bruising. It is a type of phylloquinone.

What is Vitamin K?

Vitamin K is a group of fat-soluble vitamins required for the synthesis of proteins needed for blood coagulation and for calcium binding in bones and other tissues.

Chemical Structure of Vitamin K

Vitamin K Physiology

Sources of Vitamin K

Vitamin K Deficiency

Vitamin K Biochemistry

Newborn Vitamin K Injections

Vitamin K Uses

Vitamin K2: Physiological Importance and Increasing Your Intake

Latest Vitamin K News and Research

Vitamin K may offer protective health benefits as we age, study suggests

A new, multi-ethnic study found older adults with low vitamin K levels were more likely to die within 13 years compared to those whose vitamin K levels were adequate.

15 Jun 2020

AHA calls for specialized care for pregnant women with cardiovascular conditions

Women with cardiovascular conditions should be cared for during pregnancy by a cardio-obstetrics team or health care providers experienced in high-risk pregnancies to provide specialized maternity care for the mother and fetus, according to a new American Heart Association scientific statement, Cardiovascular Considerations in Caring for Pregnant Patients, published today in the Association's flagship journal Circulation.

4 May 2020

Secondary analysis reinforces safety of blood thinner

Treatment with the blood thinner apixaban was associated with a lower risk of bleeding, death and hospitalization compared with warfarin, regardless of history of prior stroke or blood clot, according to a secondary analysis presented as late breaking science today at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2020.

23 Feb 2020

Edoxaban-based dual therapy noninferior to standard treatment in atrial fibrillation post-stenting

Edoxaban in combination with a P2Y12 inhibitor is noninferior to standard triple therapy for preventing bleeding in patients with atrial fibrillation after coronary stenting.

4 Sep 2019

Why cilantro (coriander) is good for your health

Scientists have uncovered the molecular action through which the herb cilantro delays the onset of certain seizures in epilepsy and other diseases.

25 Jul 2019

Review provides new recommendations to manage menopausal symptoms after breast cancer

A large proportion of the world's estimated 9.3 million breast cancer survivors experience menopausal symptoms or clinical manifestations of estrogen deficiency.

10 Jul 2019

Older adults with low circulating vitamin K levels more likely to develop mobility limitation, disability

Low levels of circulating vitamin K are linked to increased risk of mobility limitation and disability in older adults, identifying a new factor to consider for maintaining mobility and independence in older age, according to a study led by researchers at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University.

13 Jun 2019

Warfarin-treated patients benefit from increasing their vitamin K intake, finds study

When prescribed the anticoagulant drug warfarin, many patients are told to limit foods rich in vitamin K, such as green vegetables.

12 Jun 2019

Supplements provide no additional health benefits, conclude researchers

A new study has found that using dietary supplements such as calcium and vitamin D do not prolong life expectancy, and may increase cancer risk.

9 Apr 2019

Research identifies first case of a person without vitamin D binding protein

Research identifying the first case of a person living without the protein needed to bind and transport vitamin D in the bloodstream has been published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

4 Apr 2019

Plant-based whole food diet can reduce gingivitis, shows study

A plant-based whole food diet reduced gingivitis in a recent randomized trial published in the Journal of Clinical Periodontology.

3 Apr 2019

Innovative micronutrient-rich food developed for elderly people with swallowing difficulties

Researchers of Kaunas University of Technology and Lithuanian University of Health Sciences developed innovative micronutrient-rich food product for elderly people with swallowing difficulties.

3 Apr 2019

Study reveals vitamin B12 as inhibitor of key enzyme in hereditary Parkinson's disease

Iban Ubarretxena, an Ikerbasque Researcher and Director of the Biofisika Institute, participates in a piece of research that has enabled new inhibitors to be identified and which could be used to develop drugs to combat Parkinson's.

3 Apr 2019

Gut microbiota can help predict occurrence of colorectal cancer

Gut microbiota - the population of microbes that live in our intestine - can be used to predict the occurrence of colorectal cancer, the second most common type of cancer in women and the third in men.

1 Apr 2019

Marijuana use during pregnancy may increase psychosis risk in offspring

Pregnant women who use cannabis may slightly increase the risk their unborn child will develop psychosis later in life, suggests new research from Washington University in St. Louis.

28 Mar 2019

Vitamin C can reduce the length of ICU stay

Vitamin C administration shortened the length of stay in the intensive care unit on average by 8% in 12 trials with 1766 patients according to a meta-analysis published in Nutrients.

28 Mar 2019

Inherited form of rickets improves more with new injectable medicine than conventional therapy

Burosumab, a new injectable medicine to treat X-linked hypophosphatemia (XLH), an inherited form of rickets, demonstrates superior improvements in rickets and other outcomes compared with conventional therapy in an international, phase 3 clinical trial in children.

25 Mar 2019

City of Hope exhibits current studies and data on cancer therapies at AACR

City of Hope, a world-renowned independent research and treatment center for cancer and diabetes, will showcase ongoing studies and data on chimeric antigen receptor T cell therapy, immunotherapy against solid tumors and more at the American Association for Cancer Research annual meeting from March 29 through April 3 in Atlanta.

22 Mar 2019

Combination of two topical creams can prevent cancer

A combination of two topical creams already shown to clear precancerous skin lesions from sun-damaged skin also lowers the risk that patients will later develop squamous cell carcinoma of the skin.

22 Mar 2019