Trial: Vitamin K Supplement Curbs Coronary Atherosclerosis

In a two-year clinical study recently published in the journal JAMA Cardiology, a Dutch research team demonstrated that supplementation with the vitamin K2 homolog menaquinone-7 can slow the accumulation of calcium in atherosclerotic plaques. The study included 180 patients with mild to severe coronary artery calcification (CAC score between 50 and 400). Divided into two groups, one group received 360 µg of vitamin K2 in the form of menaquinone-7 (MK-7) daily, while the other received a placebo. While the average CAC score in the placebo group rose from 145 to 214 at the end of the two-year period, this parameter increased only from 135 to 184 in the treatment group. The beneficial effect of MK-7 was particularly evident in the early stages of the disease, whereas no slowing of the process was observed in cases of advanced plaque calcification.

The group of menaquinones, collectively referred to as vitamin K2, includes compounds produced by bacteria. In addition to their impact on cardiovascular health, menaquinones play an important role in bone metabolism. A related substance with similar properties is nattokinase, which is also produced through bacterial fermentation. The fact that these natural substances are increasingly becoming the focus of clinical research is very welcome. Studies like these are not a given. In this respect, such clinical studies also reflect the growing pressure stemming from the numerous pioneering scientific studies that paved the way.

The fact that the effect observed is only moderate is clearly related to the use of a single active ingredient. It is well known that there are close synergistic relationships between micronutrients. A targeted, coordinated use of these nutrients in combination has thus been shown to be significantly more effective. In the case of atherosclerotic diseases, vitamin C and the amino acid lysine are essential for the formation of collagen, which provides structural support. Plaque calcification can only occur at all if plaques build up, namely, as a result of chronic instability of the connective tissue in the arterial wall or, in other words, due to a persistent deficiency of those key micronutrients. Given the strain that cardiovascular diseases in particular place on our healthcare systems, the question remains: how much longer will we accept that crucial scientific findings are being kept out of widespread medical practice?