For CARDIOMYOPATHY, Vitamin K2 can improve heart health in several important ways: It helps prevent calcification and stiffness of the arteries, and it reduces inflammation and oxidative stress. Vitamin K2 also improves the cardiac microcirculation that brings oxygen to the heart muscle, and it boosts the mitochondria that produce energy for the heart to pump.

Vitamin K2 reduces vascular calcification

Cardiomyopathy can be worsened by conditions that put additional strain on the heart, such as arterial stiffness due to calcium deposits. Cardiomyopathy is an acquired or hereditary progressive disorder of heart muscle that makes it harder for the heart to pump blood throughout the body. There are several types of this disease which result in the heart muscle being either abnormally enlarged, thickened, or stiffened. This leads to ventricular dilation, impaired systolic pumping, poor blood flow to the body, and fluid build-up in the lungs or legs.

Calcification can worsen cardiomyopathy when calcium deposits build up in the walls of coronary arteries, which supply blood to the heart muscle. The buildup of calcium in artery walls makes them stiff and less elastic and puts extra strain on the heart, as it must pump harder to move blood through the rigid vessels. Calcification is also part of atherosclerosis, where plaque — made of fat, cholesterol, and other substances that stick onto calcium deposits — forms and hardens over time. Plaque narrows and stiffens the coronary arteries, reducing the flow of oxygen-rich blood to the myocardium (heart muscle) and causing a condition, known as ischemia, which starves the heart muscle of oxygen and nutrients. Chronic ischemia can lead to damage and death of heart muscle cells, which are then replaced by scar tissue. This process weakens the heart muscle, making it less efficient at contracting and relaxing, aggravating the impaired pumping which is a hallmark of cardiomyopathy.

Vitamin K2 is thought to benefit heart health by activating a protein called Matrix Gla Protein, or MGP. We know that MGP is a powerful inhibitor of soft tissue calcification, binding to calcium ions to prevent the inappropriate buildup of calcium in places like the arteries and heart valves. By activating MGP, vitamin K2 can help prevent or slow the progression of calcification, thereby reducing stress on the heart.

When the body is deficient in vitamin K2, MGP remains in an inactive state and cannot perform its anti-calcification function effectively. Calcification of the coronary arteries and heart valves can lead to conditions like aortic stenosis, which stiffens the valves and forces the left ventricle of the heart to work harder to pump blood through the constricted opening. The increased workload causes the left ventricular muscle to thicken and enlarge, hypertrophy, making it harder for the heart to fill with blood. This increased workload can contribute to worsening of cardiomyopathy.

Research confirms that vitamin K2’s ability to inhibit calcification can help maintain the elasticity of arteries, improving blood flow and reducing the heart’s workload. In a landmark 2004 study called The Rotterdam Study, over 4,800 participants were followed for 10 years, and it was found that a high dietary intake of vitamin K2 was strongly associated with a reduced risk of arterial calcification and cardiovascular disease. For every 10 micrograms of K2 consumed daily, the risk of coronary heart disease was reduced by 9%.¹

Vitamin K2 improves microcirculation

Research suggests that MGP also plays a role in the health of the heart’s microcirculation — the network of tiny blood vessels that directly supply the heart muscle itself. For cardiomyopathy patients, damage to these vessels can impair the heart’s function, and so preserving the function of these vessels can be crucial for a healthy heart. Activation of MGP by vitamin K2 appears to help preserve the integrity of our cardiac microcirculation. Several studies have investigated the effect of vitamin K2 supplementation on arterial stiffness, a measure of vascular health that can be linked to microcirculation. A significant 2023 study of healthy postmenopausal women found that three years of daily vitamin K2 (MK-7) supplementation improved cardiovascular health by inhibiting the age-related stiffening of arteries.² Another clinical trial in postmenopausal women with low vitamin K status found that one year of MK-7 treatment significantly attenuated vascular stiffness and resulted in a decreased blood pressure.³ Research with heart failure patients also shows that deficiency of vitamin K correlates with poor diastolic function and disease severity.

Vitamin K2 reduces inflammation and oxidative stress

Inflammation and oxidative stress contribute to the development and progression of cardiomyopathy as well as a variety of other heart diseases.

Vitamin K2 is known to inhibit inflammation in the arterial walls, and this can slow the progression of coronary artery disease and help to preserve heart muscle function. Specifically, the MK-7 form of vitamin K2 is associated with reduced cell signaling that triggers the inflammatory process, so that inflammation is quieted.

Vitamin K2 acts as an antioxidant, which can help to reduce oxidative stress and scavenge free radicals that could damage blood vessel walls and worsen cardiomyopathy.

Antioxidants are natural substances made in our bodies or taken from plant or mineral sources, that shield tissues from scavenging free radicals, reduce oxidative stress and cell damage, and quench harmful peroxides that damage tissues. Antioxidants boost our own protective glutathione and superoxide dismutase and catalase enzymes, which protect against oxidative damage. These enzymes block assault on cells from reactive oxygen species and super-oxides that form naturally during metabolism. Higher tissue levels of antioxidants also offset environmental oxidative injury from processed foods, sun, or pollutants, and they are protective against many chronic ailments including cardiomyopathy and other heart diseases.

Free radicals are unstable molecules that form when atoms or molecules gain or lose electrons. The resulting free radicals have unpaired electrons, and they roam the body seeking other atoms or molecules to bond to. If they attach to tissues, the rogue free radicals cause damage to cells, lipids, proteins, and DNA, called oxidative stress. Ongoing oxidative stress and its chronic assault on the body can lead to long-term injury to muscles, organs, and cells. Free oxygen radicals are produced naturally during normal metabolic processes, such as clearing cellular waste, exercise, mounting an inflammatory response; or from exposure to external environmental sources such as air pollutants, drugs, and industrial chemicals.

A balance between free radicals and antioxidants to neutralize them is necessary for health. Free radicals are produced constantly, and the body normally makes abundant antioxidants. But if the number of free radicals overwhelms the body’s innate antioxidant mechanisms to disempower these unstable compounds, then free radicals cause oxidative injury that worsens degenerative disorders including cardiomyopathy.

Research confirms that antioxidants including vitamin K2 function by scavenging harmful free oxygen radicals, then binding up and neutralizing them to protect against cellular destruction.

Vitamin K2 boosts mitochondria

Mitochondria are small organelles within cells, often called “powerhouses,” that convert food into energy, regulate cell lifespan, and influence various cellular functions including heat generation, metabolism, and growth. They are crucial for a cell’s survival and overall health.

The heart is reliant upon mitochondria to generate the large amounts of energy required for its incessant pumping. Poor mitochondrial function can worsen cardiomyopathy and contribute to heart failure. Studies indicate that vitamin K2 can improve mitochondrial function and energy production in cells, leading to more available energy and better nourishment for the heart muscle, improving its function.

Vitamin K2 can be found in small amounts in fermented foods like natto, sauerkraut, or kefir, organ meats such as liver, egg yolks and cheese. However, the consumption of vitamin K has gradually decreased since the 1950s, and due to modern manufacturing processes, the vitamin K2 content of the food supply has significantly dropped. Therefore, getting enough vitamin K2 through diet alone may not be sufficient, and supplements are a more reliable way to ensure adequate intake.⁴˒⁵

In our clinic, we use a patented form of vitamin K2 in its most potent MK-7 form, known for its superior bioavailability, clinically studied and shown to deliver cardiovascular benefits. We look for an ample dose of MK-7, ideally around 90 mcg per capsule, in an oil base. This gives superior absorption because vitamin K is a fat-soluble vitamin. Our patients with cardiomyopathy who take MK-7 have reported improved energy for daily activities, less shortness of breath, and a reduction of ankle swelling.

Recommendation: A dose of 90 mcg per day has been shown to be effective in improving arterial stiffness and reducing the progression of arterial calcification. Because vitamin K2 is a fat-soluble vitamin, it is best absorbed when taken with a meal that contains fat or oil such as avocado, salmon, or salad dressing.

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