I’ve mentioned Weston A. Price Foundation (WAPF) as one of my favorite nutritional viewpoints. After listening to a recent Chris Kresser podcast, I realized that I want to tell you a little more about Dr. Price and give you a bit of insight into his research. There is so many good things from WAPF that I want to share with you, but this specific topic seemed especially timely considering that our family has a growing number of children and one or two people (cough cough DAD! JOSH!) who need to pay special attention to their coronary health.
Dr. Weston A. Price was a dentist who devoted his life to researching the role of nutrition in health and disease. He traveled the world studying traditional cultures that had not yet become industrialized, cultures that were still eating their traditional diet. He found that unlike his patients in the US who suffered from all kinds of dental problems- cavities, really narrow faces, problems with structural development of the face and the jaw- the traditional peoples around the world that he studied had none of these problems. They had beautiful teeth, no cavities, wide dental arches, and great facial structure. He became fascinated by the role that nutrition played in this, and studied the common themes of the diets of these different people.
In the mid-40’s, Dr. Price discovered something that he called a “vitamin-like activator” that played an influential role in the utilization of minerals, protection from tooth decay, the growth and development of the face, reproduction, protection against cardiovascular disease, and the function of the brain. He called this compound Activator X. He noted that it was present in butterfat, organs, and the fat of animals that were consuming rapidly-growing green grass… pasture-raised animals, yes, but in particular, pasture-raised animals in the spring and the fall. Price found that this Activator X was at the highest level in the fat of these animals during the spring and the fall, when the grass is growing rapidly. We now know that Activator X is vitamin K2. (It’s important to realize that vitamin K2 is not found in the fat of animals or the milk of animals that are conventionally raised. Organic milk from cows that are not grass-fed, or even grass-fed milk that comes from cows that are eating mostly brown grass are not going to have the same levels of Vitamin K2.)
We know that eating plants is healthy for us, especially leafy greens. The highest concentration of vitamin K1 is in rapidly growing green plants. Humans do not convert K1 into K2 efficiently, but animals do. K2, unlike K1, is produced by animal tissues—including the mammary glands—from vitamin K1. While K1 is essential for blood clotting, there’s a quickly-growing body of evidence that confirms discoveries that Price made almost 100 years ago now, that K2 has essential functions: protecting against tooth decay, helping us to utilize minerals, promoting healthy growth and development in a developing baby in utero and early in childhood, and also promoting healthy brain function. Vitamin K2 has recently been revealed as an integral nutrient in protecting against heart disease; it does this by telling the body to put calcium in the bones and teeth where it belongs, and not in the arteries and soft tissue.
We also know now that vitamin K2 works synergistically with other fat-soluble vitamins like vitamin A and vitamin D, and the relationships are complex. Chris Masterjohn’s article on the Weston A. Price website goes into some crazy detail about K2, but here’s the basics: vitamins A and D signal the cells in our body to produce certain proteins. Vitamin K activates those proteins that are signaled by vitamin A and D. So if you don’t have enough vitamin K, then vitamins A and D can signal those proteins, but they won’t be activated. The cycle won’t be complete.
The Rotterdam Study, which looked at 4,600 men over 55, is probably the most famous study that examined the relationship between K2 intake and heart disease. They separated the intake of K2 into three groups, and the group with the highest intake of K2 (~35 micrograms per day) was associated with 52% lower risk of severe aortic calcification, 41% lower risk of coronary heart disease, 51% lower risk of death due to heart disease, and a 26% lower risk of death due to any cause. Significant numbers!! Also worth noting is that even though the subjects consumed 10 times more K1 than K2, there was no relationship between vitamin K1 intake in any of those risk factors. So once again, that’s pretty strong evidence that eating K1 in plants is not going to give you the same benefit as eating the K2 found almost exclusively in animal products.
So, how do we go about getting more K2 in our diet? Let’s focus on some easily resourced food sources before supplement sources, and let’s shoot for ~100mcg per day:
Hard cheeses from pastured animals: ~76 micrograms per serving
Soft cheeses from pastured animals: ~56 micrograms per serving
Egg yolk from pastured animals: ~32 micrograms per serving
Butter from pastured animals: ~15 micrograms per serving.
Sauerkraut: ~5 micrograms per serving
100mcg per day is a good goal for healthy people. Those with coronary issues, pregnant or breastfeeding women (K2 is vital to baby’s brain development), kids (helps promote calmness and concentration) those with bone density or dental deterioration should definitely aim for more.
Considering the synergistic relationship between Vitamins A, D, and K2, I choose to take Fermented Cod Liver Oil/High Vitamin Butter Oil blend from Green Pastures for additional K2 (and for many more reasons… coming soon!). Sound disgusting? It’s not as bad as you think. I take the cinnamon tingle gel, which I keep in the fridge, and then scoop out about a teaspoon size amount on the back of a knife and swallow it with water. CJ takes the gel caps, two per day. HH takes about 1/4 tsp of the gel, in a spoonful of jam or apple butter. And, we eat a LOT of pastured eggs and butter!
Fortunately, we have available to us a naturally produced, unheated, fermented high-vitamin cod liver oil that is made using a filtering process that retains natural vitamins. This high-vitamin fermented cod liver oil is sold as a food so does not contain vitamin levels on the label. But after numerous tests, the values of A and D have been estimated at 1900 IU vitamin A per mL and 390 IU vitamin D per mL. So, 1 teaspoon of high-vitamin fermented cod liver oil contains 9500 IU vitamin A and 1950 IU vitamin D, a good ratio of about 5:1.
Based on these values, the dosage for the high-vitamin fermented cod liver oil is provided as follows:
– Children age 3 months to 12 years: 1/2 teaspoon or 2.5 mL (4650 IU vitamin A and 975 IU vitamin D)
– Children over 12 years and adults: 1 teaspoon or 10 capsules (9500 IU vitamin A and 1950 IU vitamin D)
– Pregnant and nursing women: 2 teaspoons or 20 capsules (19,000 IU vitamin A and 3900 IU vitamin D)
Important to note: fermented cod liver oil contains many co-factors that may enhance the body’s uptake and usage of vitamins A and D; I feel comfortable with this, and since I feel that our diet is nutrient dense, we go with half the recommended dose: ¼ teaspoon or 1.25 mL/2-3 capsules for children age 3 months to 12 years; ½ teaspoon or 5 capsules for children over 12 years and adults; and 1 teaspoon or 10 capsules for pregnant and nursing women.
Questions? Post them below!
xo Andra
Sources, and therefore interesting additional reading:
Can Vitamin K2 Prevent Cardiovascular Disease? from Chris Kresser
Cod Liver Oil Basics and Recommendations from Weston A. Price Foundation
All About Fermented Cod Liver Oil (and why I don’t take Fish Oil) from Balanced Bites
Vitamin K: This Could Be Even Bigger than the Vitamin D Discovery from Dr. Mercola
9 Steps to Perfect Health, Step 4 from Chris Kresser
Do I Need Supplements? from Wellness Mama
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