Side effects of excess vitamin K include enlarged liver, pale skin, increased sweating, difficulty breathing, muscle stiffness, edema, irregular breathing, decreased movement or activity, swollen eyelids or red skin. For young children and infants, vitamin K plays a particularly important role in preventing and fighting bleeding, especially brain and meningeal bleeding. At the same time, it can combine with calcium to help strengthen bones. However, excess vitamin K is also very dangerous because it can cause hemolysis, jaundice and cerebral palsy…

1. What is vitamin K?

Vitamin K is an important component of the liver enzyme system that synthesizes clotting factors such as prothrombin (factor II), factors VII, IX, X, which are a group of fat-soluble vitamins, similar in structure and play an important role in the regulation of blood coagulation, necessary for supporting blood clotting. Vitamin K also supports bone metabolism and calcium metabolism in the vascular system. If the body is deficient in vitamin K, the blood will not be able to clot, leading to bleeding and this can lead to death.

2. Types of vitamin K

There are two natural forms of vitamin K: vitamin K1, also known as phylloquinone, which is found in natural foods, and vitamin K2, also known as menaquinone, which is produced by beneficial bacteria in the intestines.

There are three known synthetic forms of vitamin K: vitamins K3, K4, and K5. Although natural vitamins K1 and K2 are nontoxic, the synthetic form K3 (menadione) is toxic.

Vitamin K is commonly found in foods such as: broccoli, spinach, celery, asparagus, cucumbers, basil, olive oil, parsley, cloves, eggs, dried fruits, etc.

3. So what are the risks of vitamin K deficiency?

When the body lacks vitamins and minerals, children will grow slowly and suffer from certain diseases, such as: Vitamin A deficiency can cause eye diseases, respiratory and digestive tract infections; vitamin B1 deficiency can easily cause edema, neuritis, heart failure; vitamin C deficiency can easily cause bleeding under the skin and mucous membranes, reducing the body’s resistance to diseases, especially infectious diseases; vitamin K deficiency can easily cause bleeding, especially cerebral and meningeal hemorrhage; vitamin D and calcium deficiency can cause rickets; zinc deficiency can easily cause skin diseases; fluoride deficiency can easily cause dental diseases, iron deficiency can lead to anemia…

When the body lacks vitamin K, the blood will have difficulty clotting (takes a long time to clot). This can cause excessive blood loss and increase the risk of death when injured. Vitamin K deficiency is rare in healthy adults. However, people with severe digestive disorders or who are on chronic antibiotic treatment are at risk of vitamin K deficiency.

4. Excess vitamin K

Excess vitamin K is usually only seen when using long-term injections, which can cause hemolysis and jaundice.

Side effects of vitamin K overdose include enlarged liver, pale skin, increased sweating, difficulty breathing, muscle stiffness, edema, irregular breathing, decreased movement or activity, swollen eyelids or red skin

For young children and infants, vitamin K plays a particularly important role in preventing and fighting bleeding, especially cerebral and meningeal hemorrhage. At the same time, they can combine with calcium to help strengthen bones. However, excess vitamin K is also very dangerous because it can cause hemolysis, jaundice and cerebral palsy… The type of vitamin K commonly used for newborns is natural vitamin K1. The reason why vitamin K must be injected into babies immediately after birth is because this type of vitamin is difficult to metabolize through the placenta, so newborns need to be injected with vitamin K to prevent cerebral hemorrhage. At the same time, breastfed babies absorb less vitamin K than formula-fed babies, so to prevent vitamin K deficiency, mothers need to increase their intake of foods containing this vitamin.

           Both vitamin K deficiency and excess can affect young children.

Brain and meningeal hemorrhages are very dangerous for newborns, and can cause death or leave serious sequelae. Therefore, to prevent the risk of bleeding in children and help them develop healthily, medical facilities must strictly follow the correct dosage and instructions of the Ministry of Health for children to take or inject vitamin K.

Anticoagulants such as warfarin (Coumadin®) are prescribed to prevent the normal function of vitamin K in the body. Consuming very large or very small amounts of vitamin K can change the activity of these drugs. If you take anticoagulants, you should pay attention to the foods you consume such as spinach and turnip greens because they are rich in vitamin K, and you should also ensure that the amount of vitamin K consumed from day to day is the same to ensure the effectiveness of the drug.

Consult your doctor before taking supplements such as ginkgo and garlic, because these foods can also affect blood clotting.