Vitamin K

Vitamin K is essential for blood coagulation and bone health. It helps with the formation of prothrombin, which is necessary for blood clotting. Vitamin K is believed to protect against osteoporosis and to prevent cell damage.

How Much Vitamin K Do You Need?
The Adequate Intake (AI) established by the Food and Nutrition Board of the Insititute of Medicine is 120 micrograms per day for adult males and 90 micrograms per day for adult females. No upper limits have been set.

What Happens If You Don't Get Enough Vitamin K?
With a normal diet, the body usually produces all the vitamin K it needs. However, digestive disturbances may prevent the body from properly absorbing vitamin K, and this could lead to disorders in blood clotting, which means a person could experience bleeding that won't stop.

What Happens If You Get Too Much Vitamin K?
It is extremely difficult to get too much vitamin K from a normal diet, but an overdose is possible if too much of the compound vitamin K3 is taken. An overdose can cause jaundice, anemia, flushing, and sweating.

Good Sources of Vitamin K
Vitamin K can be found in egg yolks, liver, leafy green vegetables, and soybean oil. The chart below details several rich food sources that are high in vitamin K.

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