Vitamin K2
Vitamin K2 is an important fat-soluble vitamin that plays critical roles in protection your heart and brain, and building strong bones. It also plays an important role in cancer protection.
The biological role of vitamin K2 is to help move calcium into the proper areas in your body, such as your bones and teeth. It also helps remove calcium from areas where it shouldn't be such as in your arteries and soft tissue.
If you take oral vitamin D, you also need to take vitamin K2. Vitamin K2 deficiency is actually what produces the symptoms of vitamin D toxicity, which includes inappropriate calcification that can lease to harding of your arteries.
Unlike K1, which is found mostly in green, leafy vegetables, K2 occurs naturally in animal-based foods, most notably meats and poultry. Data from the USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, shows that 100 grams of beef-pork pepperoni contain 41.7 micro-grams of vitamin K2, making it the richest listed source of the micro-nutrient. A chicken drumstick, meat only, contains 35.7 micro-grams of K2 per 100 grams, while beef-pork salami has 28 micro-grams of K2. A smoked pork sausage link contains 13.7 micro-grams, and fast-food chicken tenders average 10.3 micro-grams per 100 grams.
In addition to meat and poultry, K2 occurs naturally in a number of other animal based foods, most notably cheese, eggs and butter.
According to the USDA data, 100 grams of cream cheese contains 19.7 micro-grams of K2, while 100 grams of dried egg mix has 11.4 micro-grams. Imitation cheese food has 6.1 micro-grams of K2, and dry white cheese has 5.9 micro-grams per 100 grams.
Benefits of Vitamin K2:
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Helps inhibit Inflammation in your body
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Works synergistically with a number of other nutrients,
including calcium and vitamin D. Its biological role is to
help move calcium into the proper area in your body, such
as bones and teeth
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Plays a role in removing calcium from areas where it
shouldn't be, such as in your arteries and soft tissue
