Lee Swanson Research Update

Vitamin K May Reduce Risk of Type-2 Diabetes

June 2010

Increased intakes of vitamin K may reduce the risk of developing type-2 diabetes. That’s what scientists found after they studied nearly 40,000 Dutch men and women.

For every increase of 10 mcg of vitamin K2 intake the risk of type-2 diabetes was reduced by seven percent, according to findings published in Diabetes Care.

Correlation does not prove causality, however, and more research is needed to explore the potential benefits of a vitamin K-rich diet in reducing the risk of type-2 diabetes, a disease that affects almost 24 million Americans.

Researchers from the University Medical Center Utrecht and the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment report that vitamin K1 intakes “tended to be associated with a reduced risk of type-2 diabetes.” This link was not statistically significant, however.

There are two main forms of vitamin K: phylloquinone, also known as phytonadione (vitamin K1) and menaquinones (vitamin K2). K1 is found in green leafy vegetables such as lettuce, broccoli and spinach, and makes up about 90% of the vitamin K in a typical western diet. K2, which makes up about 10% of western vitamin K consumption, can be synthesized in the gut by microflora.

Led by Joline Beulens, the researchers analyzed data from 38,094 Dutch people aged between 20 and 70. Food frequency questionnaires were used to evaluate dietary intakes of phylloquinone and menaquinones.

During 10.3 years of study, the researchers documented that 918 people developed diabetes. After crunching the numbers, it was calculated that for each 10 mcg increase in menaquinone intake, the risk of developing type-2 diabetes decreased by seven percent.

Diabetes Care Published online ahead of print.

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