Hi again .
I keep seeing posts about vitamin K2 being good for ensuring calcium goes to the bones.
I also have read it had blood clotting capabilities .
I am on rivoroxiban to prevent blood clots . .
I am assuming this would mean I cannot take K2 as it would be counter productive.
Any thoughts on experience of the taking the two together would be much appreciated.
Thank you 😊
I would speak to the doctor or hospital dept who prescribed rivoroxiban before you take K2.
I understand taking a regular amount of Vitamin K2 is different to just taking random amounts and I’m sure a friend who was moved off warfarin onto rivoroxiban recently said that she no longer has to avoid K2 containing vegetables in her diet.
But - I am NOT medically qualified so I would most definitely find out before you take vitamin K2-Mk7.
Thank you . I am going to speak to my dr as well but it’s also good to hear others views 😊
You will not find significant amounts of K2 in vegetables. If we did, we would not have to worry about being deficient. Vitamin K1 is what you get in your leafy greens and which it is wise to be careful not to overdo if on a warfarin type blood thinner. Vitamin K2 has less effect on the blood, just as K1 has less benefit for the bones. Because not enough research seems to have been published, caution, but not avoidance, is a good idea.
Looby60
Thank you . It is difficult because as you say is not a lot of research into the 2 different type of K . So confusing isn’t it .
It's so annoying when the papers do not consistently specify K1 or K2. There is such a difference in their function in the body it would be helpful if they had different names. It's a bit puzzling why this happens. I don't think the different B vitamins get confused the same way. 😩
Healthline has a good introductory article on Vitamin K2, and there is a book on the subject by Kate Rheaume-Bleue
Not heard of healthine will look that up now if I can .
Just Google Healthline vitamin K2. As far as I know any items for sale are ads, I don't see them when using my laptop, now in for repair, as I use Adblock. It's not a commercial site. If I wasn't struggling with a little old tablet I'd be able to give you some links.
Probably dentists are more up on Vitamin K2 than any other health care professions because they are finding it helps dental health. I would be very surprised if your doctor knows anything, and I can tell you where I live I cannot buy K2 from my pharmacy, I get it from a store which sells health products. No, I am not being sucked in by advertising. Vitamin K2 has been working for me and many others and if we lived in Japan there would be no question it is an essential nutrient.
If it's research you're after, this website provides citations to many studies. They do sell a supplement, however it's a good source of information on vitamin K and health supported by research. It includes the sentence, "There is ongoing research to highlight and summarize differences between vitamin K1 and K2 in intake and function, beyond coagulation (Wen et al, 2018; Halder et al, 2019; Simes et al, 2020)."
There is a central list of references and theyare also organised by health category, e.g., Vitamin K and Bone, Vitamin K and Cardiac...
k-vitamins.com/index.php?pa...
Hopefully your conversation with your doctor will clear things up.
Ah, even though I eat lots of leafy green veg I still take K2-Mk7 every day so it looks like that covers K1 as well 😉
I don't think there's much difficulty getting enough K1 in our diet. Changes in what we feed cattle and poultry means they no longer convert the vitamin to K2 for us, hence deficiency in many.
Exactly- soil and crops have been ruined over the years with modern farming techniques. Organic is best if you can get it / afford it. 😊
Grain feeding is what does it. Only grass-fed animals can give us K2. Now that I think about it, makes sense, because they'd get K1 from greens, but not from grain, and are more efficient at converting to K2 than humans are.
We’re very lucky, we’ve got a grass fed farm / butcher quite close. We can also get salt marsh lamb locally too but from a different butcher.Interesting that grain doesn’t do much for humans either - well not for this human anyway.
Very good. 
HI, there is a factsheet on the ROS website that explains K1 and K2 including what foods contain these. It's called Further Food Facts and bones. That should help to answer your question.
In addition to osteoporosis, I also have a pacemaker, two leaking heart valves and the occasional atrial fibrillation episode. For the osteoporosis after much thought and angst I decided to take Raloxifene. I have done well with this with no side effects, but it does carry a stroke risk. When my routine pacemaker check showed the atrial fibrillation, I was prescribed Apixiban, an anticoagulant, and I too had concerns about K2. My pharmacist said stop taking it but my cardiologist said if I had been taking it regularly, continue because K1 is more involved in the clotting process not K2. He also told me the Apixiban would help against the risk of a stroke whilst taking Raloxifene. Nevertheless, I think if you are concerned it would be helpful to clarify with your GP or ideally a cardiologist.
Hi Looby60, there is k1 that is for blood clotting and k2 that is to regulate calcium. I have osteoporosis and take k2 to strengthen my bones amongst other things. Touch wood I have not had or ever had any fractures or broken bones. I do not take any medications and have not been put on any by my consultant even though I have comparable scores to people who take medication.
Speak to your GP or Specialist before taking K2
Thank you all for your input . I do intend speaking to my GP but was just finding others views .
It is only my GP who can give me the risks involved for all my medications .
Thank you again 😊
Firstly - comments on anticoagulants - Wafarin works by inhibiting VitK which is essential vitamin for clotting process therefore if you are on Wafarin you will have INR tests and can adjust the amount of Wafarin you take by self-testing and therefor avoid having to restrict your nutritional intake because we do need VitK.
DOACs = Direct Oral Anti Coagulants work very differently and don’t inhibit VitK as they work on what is called FactorX.
Now your GP may - or may not know and understand - this very important difference. Your Pharmacist should, and IMHO, is the more educated and qualified person to ask about medications.
I’m on Apixaban and take K2 to assist absorption of VitD. I don’t and won’t take any Calcium supplements as they tend to disrupt other conditions.
When you have more than one condition it is quite complex in balancing the needs and being aware of the risks of taking these medications.
Just another aside for those who may not aware, mainly because it is never highlighted in either the literature or are GP’s aware - Rivaroxaban should be taken at the same time of day and always take with a substantial meal (500calories) which contains some protein and fat.
And for all the DOACs you need regular blood test for liver and kidney function prior to starting the medications and 6 monthly thereafter. Again not all GPs are diligent in providing this service so sometimes you have to ask.
Hope that helps. Proviso - I’m not a medic but I have done extensive research into anticoagulants because I was very concerned about taking them and have spoken to many very qualified people and attended seminars with some of the leading doctors and scientist in UK, one of whom was world authority on anticoagulation and was kind enough to spend a lot of time with me explaining the science during a break-out session.
Best wishes.
I am taking vitamin K2 MK7. I have osteoporosis. I also take Clopidogrel blood thinner. I googled the interactions on a drug interator site and the two had no interactions. Maybe you could do the same to check for interactions?
Vitamin K2 is responsible for getting calcium to the teeth and bones and not into our kidneys and blood vessels. Vit K is required for blood clotting, however K2 is considered good for heart health since it removes calcium from the arteries. Reading K2 and the Calcium Paradox book is necessary to understand how it all hangs together. In the meantime here is a review of the book which gives a precis. lauraschoenfeldrd.com/book-...
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