New Vitamin K and arterosclerosis study

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ARTERIAL CALCIFICATION REDUCED WITH VITAMIN K2 INTAKE ACCORDING TO NEW

STUDY IN THE JOURNAL ATHEROSCLEROSIS

September 10, 2008, town NJ - PL and NattoPharma are

pleased to announce that a new study demonstrated the association of

high dietary Vitamin K2 consumption with reduction of coronary

calcification in humans. Accepted by the journal Atherosclerosis, this

study is now available online.

http://www.atherosclerosis-journal.com/article/S0021-9150(08)00507-8/abs

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Researchers at University Medical Center Utrecht, Wageningen University

and Erasmus Medical Center Rotterdam investigated whether daily

consumption of natural phylloquinone (K1) and menaquinones (K2) might be

related to the extent of calcification within the vasculature of 564

healthy post-menopausal women. This study was undertaken to examine the

hypothesis that natural vitamin K plays a crucial role in the prevention

of heart disease. The study discovered that high consumption of natural

vitamin K2, about 45 mcg daily, was associated with 20% decreased

coronary calcification as compared with low consumption of K2, of about

18 mcg daily. Preventing arterial calcification is important for a

healthy and flexible vasculature. Further, for Vitamin K1 no such

correlation was found.

" This study confirms once again that natural Vitamin K2, also called the

menaquinones, is clearly linked to the prevention of cardiovascular

disease, " said Vitamin K expert Leon J Schurgers, senior scientist from

VitaK, at the Maastricht University in the Netherlands. " While all K

vitamins are important, it seems that especially the natural vitamin K2

intake is essential to cardiovascular health. "

Earlier studies suggested the strongly protective effect of K2 on

vascular calcium deposition. One such example is the Rotterdam study,

published in the Journal of Nutrition in 2004

(http://www.willner.com/content/561_A.pdf

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48c205e42d4b/dkalman@...> ).

In this study the dietary intake of 4800 healthy adults over a 10 year

period was examined, and revealed that increased dietary intake of

specifically vitamin K2 significantly reduced the risk of both arterial

calcification and cardiovascular mortality by 50% as compared to low

intake. Vitamin K1 - even when taken in large quantities - had no

influence on excessive calcium accumulation.

Schurgers continued, " Fermented cheese is the primary source of natural

vitamin K2 in the Western diet. Isn't it interesting that cheeses may

be considered " unhealthy " due to the high unsaturated fat content - yet

consumption of cheese may reduce the risk of a heart attack! Recently

we have found a possible scientific explanation in experimental animals

in which high vitamin K2 could regress arterial calcifications. Since

most apparently healthy adults are vitamin K-deficient in their

arteries, extra vitamin K2 intake would be necessary to maintain healthy

arteries. Fortunately now dietary supplements are available with natural

vitamin K2 and foods may be enriched with it as well. "

A natural vitamin K2 as a dietary supplement ingredient called MenaQ7 is

now currently available. MenaQ7 is extracted from the traditional

Japanese food natto, providing the natural Vitamin K2 as menaquinone-7,

the long-chained molecule offering superior bioavailability and health

effects in low doses, which has been tied to both bone and

cardiovascular health.

Background: MGP and arterial calcification

Arterial calcification contributes to the fragility and stiffness of

blood vessels, thereby increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease

(CVD). Recent studies have confirmed that arterial calcification is a

strong indicator of cardiovascular health: the survival rate is

associated with the amount of calcification present within the

vasculature. Freely translated, a person is as old as their arteries

are: a significant calcification " increases the chronological age " and

subsequently shortening lifespan; while an older person with little or

no calcification can deduct years from his or hers chronological age

(Shaw, 2006).

However, to properly perform its preventive function, MGP must be

activated by K Vitamins during the activation (= carboxylation)

reaction. Thus, vitamin K deficiency results in under-carboxylation of

MGP (ucMGP) species and impairs their biological function. Lacking an

adequate vitamin K intake, ucMGP accumulates at the sites of calcium

deposition but is inactive and thus ineffective in preventing and

inhibiting calcification, which then increases the risk of fatal

cardiovascular event.

The different effects of vitamin K2 and vitamin K1 probably reflect

differences in how the body metabolizes the different forms of vitamin

K. K1 is mainly cleared by the liver and used to activate proteins

involved in coagulation. Vitamin K2 is available to the liver, but is

also transported to tissues outside the liver, such as bone and

cardiovascular tissues.

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For more information please contact x 215 or

eric@...

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About MenaQ7

MenaQ7 provides Natural Vitamin K2 as an extract of natto, a fermented

soy food from Japan. Natto is particularly rich in the highly

bio-available form of vitamin K2 called menaquinone-7 (MK-7). MenaQ7

provides the only commercially available Natural Vitamin K2 with

guaranteed actives and stability, clinical substantiation and

international patents awarded and pending.

For more information on the health benefits of MenaQ7, please visit

www.menaq7.com

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About NattoPharma

NattoPharma, Norway, is a publically-traded company and the exclusive

international supplier and brand owner of MenaQ7 natural Vitamin K2.

NattoPharma has entered into a multi-year research and development

program to substantiate and discover the health benefits of natural

vitamin K2 for applications in the exciting marketplace for functional

food and health food supplements. www.nattopharma.com

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About PL

PL , a New Jersey-based ingredient supplier offers fifty years of

innovation in securing reliable, high quality raw materials for the

food/functional food and nutrition industries. PLT is a one-stop

resource for application solutions, current industry information and

technical service, and specializes in water-soluble gums and

clinically-supported botanical extracts. www.plthomas.com

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osclerosis study

S. Kalman PhD, RD, CCRC, FACN

Miami Research Associates

Director, Nutrition & Applied Clinical Research

6141 Sunset Drive #301

Miami, FL. 33143

(fax)

www.miamiresearch.com <http://www.miamiresearch.com>