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Vitamin K doesn’t usually get the attention it deserves, which is bad because it is a very important nutrient for our bones and for our heart health! Deficiency is very common and tends to go unnoticed until we’re older and it manifests as osteoporosis, arterial or kidney calcification, heart conditions, or even cancer.

It’s never too early for our kids or too late for us to start getting adequate amounts. All we have to do is add green vegetables and leafy greens to our regular diet.

On this page, we’ll share the best foods to help you reach your intake needs, a nutrition calculator to help you identify your Recommended Daily Allowance as well as your family’s, further details on what vitamin K can do for you and your family, some important facts, and a comparison between whole-food, plant-based sources, supplements, and animal-based sources. Enjoy!

Top Whole-Food, Plant-Based Sources

Green vegetables, especially green leaves, are a fantastic source of vitamin K. One serving alone can give us our daily requirements. So, the key to avoiding deficiency is simply to add any of these to our daily menus. Think about salads, soups, roasted vegetables… the possibilities are limitless.

Hover over each food below to see how much of the Daily Value (DV) of vitamin K you can get with one cup. Click on each food’s picture to visit its interactive page with a sophisticated calculator that will show you this food’s top nutrients and how much of your RDA and your family’s RDAs you can find in one portion. Plus, discover some delicious and easy-to-make recipe ideas, and learn how this food can support your overall well being.

Parsley

Parsley

1 Tbsp raw = 52% DV

Link
Kale

Kale

1 cup raw 81% & cooked 412% DV

Link
Brussel Sprouts

Brussel Sprouts

1 cup cooked = 182% DV

Link
Collard Greens

Collard Greens

1 cup raw 131% & cooked 508%

Link
Spinach

Spinach

1 cup raw 121% & cooked 740% DV

Link
Mustard Greens

Mustard Greens

1 cup raw 120% & cooked 692% DV

Link
Broccoli

Broccoli

1 cup raw 76% & cooked 183% DV

Link
Asparagus

Asparagus

1 cup boiled 75% DV

Link

Vitamin K Personalized Calculator

See how much vitamin K you and each member of your family needs. You will notice that children’s needs are below the Daily Value, or that adult women need less than men, even when they are pregnant or breastfeeding! Getting your personalized nutrition values will give you a better idea of how to plan your meals and family portions. You can never get too much vitamin K, but unless you are already eating greens regularly, there is a chance you and your loved ones are not getting enough.

Select your age group, sex, and whether you are pregnant or breastfeeding to get your personalized values!

Terminology:

  • Daily Value (DV): The recommended amount of nutrients to consume each day for individuals who are 4 years old or older.
  • Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA): The recommended amount of nutrients to consume each day according to the individual’s age, gender, and whether a woman is pregnant or breastfeeding.
  • Upper Intake Level (UL): The highest amount of nutrient intake that will not pose adverse health effects on most individuals.

* Average RDAs have been provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2020-2025 based on average weight by sex and age group, and based on whether women are pregnant, lactating or none.

How Our Body Uses Vitamin K

Vitamin K is a key nutrient for our bone health, our heart health, and for our wound healing process. While we may spend most of our lives being deficient without even knowing it, complications typically arise as we age including osteoporosis, hardening or the arteries, and other heart problems.

Hover over each pointer below for more details on how vitamin K aids our body. Click on the pointer to visit the specific body part’s interactive page to discover what other nutrients support it, the best sources to find them, and other interesting facts.

VITAMIN-K-Family-ANATOMY-with-Black_BG
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Important Things to Know

Hover over each of the interesting facts below to flip the tiles and learn more details.

Check out the interesting facts below! Tap on the red triangles to flip the tiles and learn more details.

We don’t show signs of deficiency until we age.

When we have a micro-nutrient deficiency, our bodies first allocate these nutrients for short-term survival and reproduction, disabling DNA repair that would keep us healthy as we age.

A vitamin K deficiency can result in heart conditions, osteoporosis, arterial and kidney calcification, and even cancer.

Babies get a vitamin K shot shortly after they’re born.

Newborns are at risk of deficiency due to low vitamin K placental transfer. Breastmilk also has a low content. This is why newborns typically get a vitamin K shot shortly after delivery.

Deficiency in infants is manifested as bleeding in the umbilicus, gastrointestinal tract, skin, nose and other sites.

Watch out for interactions with anticoagulants.

Chronic anticoagulant therapy (Warfarin/Coumadin) is associated with vitamin K deficiency. A sudden increase in vitamin K while taking these anticoagulants may lead to clot formation, and a sudden decrease may lead to bleeding.

Always talk to your doctor about vitamin K deficiency concerns or if your vitamin K intake changes during anticoagulant therapy.

We don’t show signs of deficiency until we age.

When we have a micro-nutrient deficiency, our bodies first allocate these nutrients for short-term survival and reproduction, disabling DNA repair that would keep us healthy as we age.

A vitamin K deficiency can result in heart conditions, osteoporosis, arterial and kidney calcification, and even cancer.

Babies get a vitamin K shot shortly after they’re born.

Newborns are at risk of deficiency due to low vitamin K placental transfer. Breastmilk also has a low content. This is why newborns typically get a vitamin K shot shortly after delivery.

Deficiency in infants is manifested as bleeding in the umbilicus, gastrointestinal tract, skin, nose and other sites.

Watch out for interactions with anticoagulants.

Chronic anticoagulant therapy (Warfarin/Coumadin) is associated with vitamin K deficiency. A sudden increase in vitamin K while taking these anticoagulants may lead to clot formation, and a sudden decrease may lead to bleeding.

Always talk to your doctor about vitamin K deficiency concerns or if your vitamin K intake changes during anticoagulant therapy.

Vitamin K Sources Comparison

You may be wondering about other potential sources of vitamin K aside from green vegetables and leaves. Below we make a quick and simple comparison between the three choices we typically get: whole food plants, supplements, or animal-based products. For vitamin K the top choice is clear!

Best source!
Plant-Based
We can get all the vitamin K we need by eating one daily portion of dark green leafs!
Supplements
Most multivitamins only have a small percentage of the vitamin K we need.
Animal-based
Vitamin K is present in very small amounts in animal-based products.

References