Vitamin K & the Joints

As you age, you may become one of the 46 million people affected by arthritis in the joints. Arthritis is caused by inflammation and the wearing down of the cartilage covering your joints due to the repetitive motion of one bone gliding over another to cause movement. Arthritic joint disease affects women and men equally, frequently occurring around middle age. Vitamin K is an essential vitamin that is probably best known for its role in blood clotting. However, it appears vitamin K may also play an important role in bone and joint health.

Arthritis and Your Joints

Your joints allow you freedom of movement, and when they are affected by disease, such as osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis, they can become stiff, making it more difficult for you to get around. Inflammation around your joints sets in, causing pain and stiffness, which is typically worse in the morning or when you get up from sitting for extended periods. The pain and inflammation surrounding your joints can also reduce the joints' range of motion.

Osteoporosis and Your Joints

Osteoporosis is a progressive disease that causes your bones to become thinner and weaker. Because of hormonal differences, osteoporosis affects women more often than men. The exact cause of osteoporosis is unknown, but the loss of bone density increases your risk of bone fractures dramatically, particularly at the hip and wrist joints. It is well known that a lack of calcium plays a major role in the development of osteoporosis, but it is not the only factor. It also appears that vitamin K, specifically vitamin K-2 in the form of menaquinone-7, or MK-7, helps keep calcium in your bones. The Harvard School of Public Health states that women who have at least 110 mcg of vitamin K in their diet are 30 percent less likely to suffer a fracture at the hip joint.

Vitamin K

Vitamin K is a fat-soluble vitamin that your body needs for proper blood clotting. Its name comes from the German word, "koagulation." Vitamin K is also crucial to the production of bone proteins and mineralization of your bones. Deficiency of vitamin K-2 can result in loss of bone density, which can affect your joints and increase your risk of fractures. Although vitamin K-1 is found in many plant foods, including kale and spinach, vitamin K-2 is produced by bacteria. Vitamin K-2 is found in fermented foods, such as yogurt, Edam cheese, gouda cheese and the Japanese fermented soy product natto.

Vitamin K and Your Joints

The mineralization of your bones requires both calcium and vitamin K. According to Phyllis A. Balch, author of "Prescription for Herbal Healing," vitamin K aids deposition of calcium into the matrix of the bone. Osteocalcin, also referred to as bone gla protein, is the protein in your bones responsible for laying down a matrix for calcium to crystallize upon in order for you to have strong, healthy bones and joints. Vitamin K is needed for osteocalcin to be able to bind calcium to the matrix so it stays in the bone. Vitamin K also plays a critical part in the synthesis of anticoagulant protein S, necessary for both blood clotting and strong bones and joints.