Vitamin K1 may Protect Postmenopausal Women with Osteopenia
Reported January 05, 2009
(NaturalNews) Osteopenia is a condition whereby there is loss of bone mass; it is not as severe as osteoporosis, but is generally accepted to lead to it. It is estimated that, in the United States, about 10 million people suffer from osteoporosis, while about 18 million have osteopenia. And a recent study conducted at the University of Toronto in Canada has found that vitamin K1 may protect postmenopausal women with osteopenia against bone fracture as well as cancer.
Details of Study
The study, which was randomized, controlled and led by Dr Angela Cheung, looked at a group of 440 postmenopausal women who suffered from osteopenia. The women were split into two groups one group received 5 mg of vitamin K1 daily for a period of two years, while the other group received a placebo. In order to find out the effects of long-term consumption of vitamin K1, 260 of the women then continued their treatment for another two more years.
All in all, the study team reported that vitamin K1 supplementation was well tolerated by the subjects over the entire 4-year period, and no particular adverse health effects were associated with long-term vitamin K1 supplementation.
Findings of Study
Tests taken at the 2-year and 4-year marks of the study measured the bone mineral density of the women. Measurements were taken at the lower back and hip.
The study found that bone density had decreased at similar rates in both the vitamin K1 and control groups. This implied that vitamin K1 did not stem the loss of bone density which is generally related to advancement in age. However, what was significant was that the women who consumed vitamin K1 suffered fewer fractures than the other group. In the former group, there were only 9 fracture incidents, as compared with 20 in the latter group.
In addition, vitamin K1 seemed to offer a protective effect against cancer, too. In the vitamin K1 group, only 3 women got cancer, as opposed to 12 in the placebo group.
Discussion
The study team has urged caution on their findings with regard to cancer and fractures. This is because, firstly, their study is quite small and, also, it was not actually designed to look at the two conditions. In the long run, larger studies would definitely be needed and, until then, they do not recommend high dose vitamin K1 supplementation for preventing osteoporosis. It would thus also follow that cancer patients or those seeking to prevent the disease should not be rushing to load up on vitamin K1.
Having said that, however, vitamin K, which is a fat soluble vitamin, is critical for good health, in particular for proper bone formation and blood clotting. Only with vitamin K can our health be aye okay, and it would thus be prudent for us to ensure that we get a decent amount of it via our diet.
Good sources of vitamin K include green leafy vegetables, such as broccoli, collards, kale and spinach. It is also found in vegetables such as asparagus, brussels sprouts, cabbage, green peas, romaine lettuce and Swiss chard. Other decent dietary sources of the vitamin include canola oil, cottonseed oil, olive oil and soybean oil.
Source : Vitamin K Does Not Stem Bone Mineral Density Decline In Postmenopausal Women With Osteopenia, Study Shows (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/20…)
