Vitamin K and Covid-19

The nutrient increased survival rates

We are beginning to gather consistent evidence of nutritional factors that improve chances of surviving Covid-19. In this study, doctors compared vitamin K status in 138 patients with Covid-19 to 138 similar healthy people.

Doctors can’t directly measure vitamin K in the body, so instead, they measure Matrix Gla Protein (MGP), which increases in body tissues when vitamin K levels are low.

In two important comparisons, MGP levels were higher—meaning vitamin K levels were lower—in those who died from Covid-19 compared to those who had survived; and MGP levels were also higher in those with Covid-19 compared to the group of 138 similar, but healthy, people.

Discussing the findings, doctors said Covid-19 primarily attacks the body by degrading elastic fibers in the lung. When vitamin K is low, signs of damage to these lung fibers increase, suggesting a direct link between good vitamin K levels and better chances of surviving Covid-19.

Reference: Nutrients; 2021, Vol. 13, No. 6, 1985