Health and budget-conscious cooks prize lentils for their high nutritional value and economical price. Unlike most other dried legumes, lentils don't require soaking. Lentils come in a rainbow of colors, including brown, red, pink and green. According to MayoClinic.com, brown lentils are the cheapest variety, but their soft texture makes them best suited for soups. The legumes are high in protein, fiber and several vitamins and minerals. If you need to bolster your vitamin K intake, however, green vegetables make a better food source than brown lentils.
Vitamin K Daily Values
Children need between 55 and 60 mcg of vitamin K each day, notes the Linus Pauling Institute. Teens require 75 mcg. Adult women need 90 mcg of vitamin K, while men require 120 mcg of the nutrient. Unlike some other nutrients, vitamin K needs don't increase during pregnancy and breastfeeding, perhaps because fetuses and newborns don't absorb the nutrient from the placenta or breast milk. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that newborns receive an injection of vitamin K to prevent life-threatening bleeding disorders.
Vitamin K in Lentils
One cup of cooked brown lentils provides 3.4 mcg of vitamin K, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Nutrient Database. The serving provides about 11 percent of the recommended daily amount of the nutrient needed each day by younger children, while providing 4.5 percent for teens, 3.8 percent for women and 2.8 percent for men.
About Vitamin K
Vitamin K's primary function is to promote proper clotting of blood, according to the Linus Pauling Institute, LPI. While deficiency in the vitamin is rare for people with adequate diets, symptoms include frequent bruising, excessive menstrual blood, bleeding gums and blood in the urine or stools. Some research suggests that vitamin K may also play a role in preventing bone disorders such as osteoporosis, but more research is needed, notes LPI.
Foods for Vitamin K
Other foods offer much higher amounts of vitamin K than the amount contained in lentils. Kale, parsley, broccoli and Swiss chard offer at least twice the daily minimum of the nutrient. Watercress, lettuce, olive oil, soybean oil and canola oil are also high in vitamin K.
Other Lentil Nutrients
In addition to providing some vitamin K, lentils are high in protein and dietary fiber. Like other legumes, lentils are a rich source of B vitamins and minerals, especially thiamine, niacin, B-6, folate, iron, copper, magnesium, manganese, potassium and zinc. Each 1 cup serving of cooked lentils contains 230 calories and less than 1 g fat.
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