Vitamin D and vitamin K are two nutrients that your body needs to function properly. Both occur naturally in food and are also available as supplements. Vitamins D and K can be taken as separate supplements or as a multivitamin containing both. Usually included in these combination products are vitamins D3 and K2.
Vitamin D has many potential health benefits, but the most established is in the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis, a disease that causes bones to become weak and brittle. Vitamin K is best known for its role in blood clotting. However, researchers are further studying additional benefits such as bone strengthening.
The two vitamins may have a synergistic effect when it comes to bone formation. For example, vitamin K may be most effective at increasing bone mass when vitamin D levels are increased, at least in animal models.
However, many traditional health care providers in the United States do not recommend vitamin K supplementation in most situations and only recommend vitamin D supplementation for some people.
However, if both vitamin D and vitamin K are supplements recommended by health care professionals, combination products containing these two vitamins are usually safe for most people, especially when taken in low doses for limited periods of time. Please know that you are safe. Still, it’s always best to check the benefits and risks with your health care provider, especially if you have underlying health conditions.
Vitamin D’s most established role in health is in the regulation of minerals such as calcium. Therefore, people who are deficient in vitamin D may not have optimally regulated calcium levels, which means they may be at increased risk of osteoporosis. This is why the most common reason health care providers recommend taking vitamin D is to treat and prevent osteoporosis.
Vitamin D also helps in other areas of bone health, such as treating softening of the bones (osteomalacia). There is insufficient evidence to say whether vitamin D has a significant effect on health measures unrelated to bone health. Still, research shows that vitamin D may be effective in:
- Allergic rhinitis (hay fever): Taking vitamin D may reduce the symptoms of hay fever, an allergy to pollen that causes sneezing, watery, itchy, and red eyes.
- tooth decay: Taking vitamin D supplements may make your child less likely to get cavities.
- heart failure: People who take vitamin D may be less likely to develop heart failure.
- Respiratory tract infections: Children who take vitamin D may be less likely to develop these infections.
Vitamin D may also have benefits for many other conditions, such as depression and cancer, but more research is needed to confirm this.
Note that vitamin D may not be helpful unless your blood levels of vitamin D are low.
Compared to vitamin D, the benefits of vitamin K supplementation are less established. Multiple trials have shown that vitamin K supplementation may help with osteoporosis, but other trials have not replicated these results.
Currently, U.S. medical guidelines do not recommend testing for or using vitamin K as part of osteoporosis treatment or prevention. However, in other parts of the world, vitamin K is commonly used to treat osteoporosis.
Researchers are also actively studying whether vitamin K may help prevent some types of heart and vascular disease by reducing harmful deposits of calcium and other minerals in blood vessels. I am.
Under the care and guidance of a health care provider, vitamin K may also be used to treat some bleeding-related conditions, such as excessive bleeding due to overdosing on the blood thinner warfarin (Coumadin).
Taking vitamin D and vitamin K together may be more effective in preventing or treating osteoporosis than taking either alone because of their synergistic effects. Researchers still need to learn more before they can say for sure.
Early research suggests that a combination of supplements may modestly improve bone density in the lumbar spine in children with beta-thalassemia, a blood disorder that reduces the production of hemoglobin. When children took 50 micrograms (mcg) of MK-7 vitamin K2 per day and 5 micrograms (mcg) of vitamin D3 per day for one year, they saw improvement. But researchers aren’t sure whether the improvements are due to the combination of vitamin K and D3, or to vitamin K and D3 alone.
For people who already take vitamin D, adding vitamin K can Be protective. Vitamin D can cause increased calcium levels in the blood, which can lead to mineral deposits in blood vessels and increase the risk of heart disease. Some supplement manufacturers claim that taking vitamin K along with vitamin D may reduce such risks.
Vitamin D is sold as tablets, powder, or liquid, most commonly in the form of D3. In higher doses, it can also be prescribed as an injection.
Similarly, vitamin K can be taken as a pill, powder, or liquid. K2 is the most readily available type, but formats using K1 are also commercially available. In newborns and in rare medical situations, he may require injections, usually in the form of K1.
If your health care provider recommends that you take both vitamin D and vitamin K, you can use two separate products. However, for convenience, you may choose to take a combination product that contains both vitamin D and vitamin K.
The most common combination products use the MK-4 or MK-7 forms of vitamin D3 and vitamin K2 as tablets or liquids. Depending on how it is marketed, the product may contain additional ingredients, such as bone and heart health.
Dose
It is not clear whether the dosage of vitamin D and vitamin K should be changed when taken together. However, here’s what we know about the dosage of each vitamin.
vitamin D
Dosing vitamin D can be a little confusing because two different measurement systems are commonly used. Dose may be measured in international units (IU) or micrograms. For reference, 400 IU of vitamin D is the same as 10 mcg.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) recommends that people ages 1 to 70 consume approximately 600 IU (15 mcg) of vitamin D per day. This includes intake from diet and supplements. Other medical societies may have different recommendations.
To prevent osteoporosis, commonly prescribed doses are 800 to 1000 IU (20 to 25 mcg) per day. However, some experts recommend higher doses, especially if a blood test shows a deficiency.
vitamin K
The NIH notes that men over the age of 19 should get enough vitamin K, 0.12 milligrams (mg), or 120 mcg, every day, and women should get 0.09 mg (90 mcg). I am. This total may include meals and, if necessary, supplements.
It is not clear what the ideal intake should be or whether both K1 and K2 are needed. For example, these amounts may provide enough vitamin K to prevent bleeding, but may not provide other potential benefits such as promoting bone health.
There appears to be no risk in taking the two supplements together. Based on what is known about their physiology, there is no reason to suspect that there is a problem, especially at low doses.
In fact, when you take vitamin K along with vitamin D, It is safer than taking vitamin D alone. That’s because vitamin K may help prevent some problems, such as heart disease, that can occur when you have too much calcium. However, it has not yet been established as a science.
However, no nutritional supplement is completely risk-free. It’s best to talk to your healthcare provider about the possible risks and benefits before starting any new supplement.
Potential drug interactions
As with any supplement, vitamin K and vitamin D can each interact with certain medications you are already taking.
The biggest drug interaction for vitamin K is with warfarin. Vitamin K can reduce the anticoagulant effect of warfarin, so taking more vitamin K than usual can lead to blood clots.
Vitamin D is known to interact with some drugs, including statins. High doses of vitamin D can make cholesterol-lowering drugs such as Lipitor (atorvastatin) less effective.
Vitamin D may also interact with thiazide diuretics, which decrease urinary calcium excretion. Because vitamin D supplements increase the amount of calcium absorbed in the intestines, the combination can cause calcium levels to become too high (hypercalcemia).
It is best to discuss potential interactions for your entire list of medications, including over-the-counter medications, with your healthcare provider. You can also find out if the medications you’re taking may put you at risk for low levels of vitamin K, vitamin D, or both.
what to look for
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not regulate vitamins and supplements in the same way as medicines. Therefore, ideally choose a supplement that has a label that indicates it has been third-party tested.
This means that a group other than the manufacturer has tested the product for its claimed ingredients and potential contaminants. The National Sanitation Foundation (NSF) and the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) are his two examples of third-party logos to look for on products.
Is it possible to take too much vitamin D3 or vitamin K?
Vitamin D may not be safe when taken in very high doses over long periods of time, especially in people who have no underlying deficiency. Very high vitamin D levels can increase the risk of hypercalcemia, which is very dangerous.
When hypercalcemia occurs, it can cause nausea, constipation, and an increased risk of kidney stones. In severe cases, hypercalcemia can also cause coma and heart rhythm problems.
Although some people may need higher doses for short periods of time, the NIH recommends 4000 IU (100 mcg) as the maximum amount of vitamin D that adults should receive daily through both diet and supplements.
Because vitamin K has a low potential for toxicity, the NIH does not set an upper limit on the amount of vitamin K a person should take.
Researchers have not studied much about the potential side effects of taking both vitamin D and vitamin K. However, taking vitamin D together may increase the risk of skin rash compared to taking it alone.
You should also consider any side effects that either supplement may cause on its own. Both are usually well tolerated. For some people, vitamin K can cause mild problems such as an upset stomach, diarrhea, and nausea.
Vitamins D and K are two supplements your health care provider may tell you you need. Products that combine the two typically contain the D3 and K2 forms of the vitamin. If you need to take both, it’s probably safe to do so. In fact, combining the two may be even more beneficial for bone health. Be aware that each supplement can interact with medications you are already taking. Before starting vitamin D and vitamin K, talk to your health care provider about the potential risks and benefits. They may also be able to recommend the best times and dosages to take each supplement.
