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A recent study suggests that increased levels of vitamin K may help lower rates of low-energy fractures in children and adolescents.
Participants in the study included 20 children with low-energy fractures and 19 children without fractures. Total serum concentrations of vitamin D, calcium, bone alkaline phosphatase, N-terminal telopeptide, uncarboxylated, and carboxylated osteocalcin.
The researchers found no statistically significant differences between the groups when the researchers examined total vitamin D levels, calcium, or other markers of bone health.
However, they did find a significant difference between the groups in the ratio of uncarboxylated osteocalcin to carboxylated osteocalcin. That ratio is a sensitive indicator for vitamin K blood levels. The mean ratio in the fracture group was 0.471 compared to 0.245 in the control group. Participants in the fracture group had a 78.3 times increased risk of fracture compared to the control group.
Researchers from Medical University of Bia?ystok in Poland conducted the study. It was published on June 6, 2018, in the journal Nutrients.
Vitamin K comes in two main forms: K1 (phylloquinone) and K2 (menaquinones). Vitamin K1 is found in green leafy vegetables and makes up approximately 90% of the vitamin K consumption in a western diet.
Vitamin K2 is harder to attain from food sources and therefore makes up only 10% of consumption. It is most common in fermented foods such as cheese but can also be found in meat and soybeans. Both vitamin K1 and K2 are also available in supplement form.