Do you think vitamin K is keto-friendly? What happens when you add it to your keto diet? Are you having a lack of vitamin K following the diet? You have reached the right place. This article will tell you how to add vitamin K to your keto diet and overcome it if you lack vitamin K.
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Why May You Need Supplements when Eating a Keto Diet?
If you’re new to keto and want a bit more information, check out our keto beginners guide.
As a quick summary, if you need it, the keto (also known as the ketogenic diet) is a low-carb, high-fat diet (LCHF).
The whole concept of the keto diet is that your body transitions from burning glucose, in simple terms, sugars or carbohydrates, to burning fat as its primary fuel source.
For a keto diet, people will restrict their macros to eating;
- 70% of their calories are from fat
- 25% from protein
- 5% from carbohydrates
Sticking to these macros for a period of time will put your body into a state of ketosis. Ketosis is when your body has transitioned from burning carbohydrates as its primary fuel source to burning fat for fuel. It is at this point that you will start to see and feel the benefits of the keto diet.
It is the role of the liver to convert amino acids into small amounts of glucose. This process is called glucogenesis. This is when ketone bodies (ketones) are created.
Eventually, your body will become what is known as ‘fat adapted‘. In simple terms, this means that your body is accustomed to burning fat as its primary fuel source and it will function this way as its default setting.
There are a lot of new terms and abbreviations that you may come across, sometimes it can feel like a new language that you need to learn. In order to help you out and keep you on the right track, we have created a keto terms and keto abbreviations guide, bookmark these to make your keto journey easier.
Some people can be put off the keto diet because of the side effects, however, these are only short-lived and the health benefits of keto far outweigh the side effects.
There is no doubt that the process of getting into ketosis and remaining there is a massive change to the way your body is used to functioning.
Supplements may be able to assist your body with this transition and speed up your journey to your health goals.
Vitamin K And Keto
Why Do We Need Vitamin K On Keto?
Low carbs diets such as Atkins and keto impose clear restrictions on your carb consumption. The point is to increase fat consumption and reduce carbs and protein intake.
Now, following a keto diet poorly and not eating a healthy balanced diet. The result of this is that you can end up with certain deficiencies. This is the same with any new diet.
To overcome this, you need supplements or include food sources rich in vitamin K in your diet to fulfill the requirements.
Why Do You Need Vitamin K?
Humans need vitamin K as it benefits our body in several ways –
- Vitamin K promotes better bone health
- Vitamin K improves your brain’s functionality or your cognitive health
- Vitamin K also helps in keeping the blood pressure in control as it prevents mineralization
- It helps in the formation of blood clots, which stops bleeding
Now you know why you should ensure you have sufficient vitamin K in your keto diet.
How Much Vitamin K Should I Be Getting On Keto?
The average amount of vitamin K required by adult men is around 122 micrograms, while adult women need 133 micrograms.
Well, the chances are you will get an adequate amount of vitamin K from your diet if you include greens like spinach, broccoli, kale, lettuce, etc.
Symptoms Of Too Little Vitamin K On A Keto Diet
In order to determine if you are running low on vitamin K check out whether you have any of these symptoms.
Here are some of the most common symptoms that can help you figure out if your has been lacking vitamin K all this time –
- The primary symptom of having a lack of vitamin K is extreme bleeding (hopefully this will not be the case)
- You can see tiny blood clots under the nails
- You will bruise very easily
- Osteoporosis or Osteopenia
- If you have a deficiency, your stool will appear black like tar-black; in worst cases, you may also find blood in them.
Symptoms Of Too Much Vitamin K On A Keto Diet
Vitamin K is among one vital nutrients required by the human body to optimize its functionality.
If you intake too much vitamin K, will there be any adverse effects? Well, yes, there may be.
There is a chance that you will end up with vitamin K toxicity. However, this is very, very rare.
So, make sure you always consume an adequate amount of vitamin K, whether it is from food sources or supplements!
How To Get Vitamin K On Keto
If you think you are not getting adequate vitamin K from your keto diet, you can always modify your diet a bit.
Getting an adequate amount of vitamin K is not a big deal in combination with the keto diet. Vitamins are very much keto-friendly as well.
All you have to do is include food sources rich in vitamin K and other micronutrients. But, you need to look closely at the carb count in order to ensure that you are still keeping within your macros.
You need to spend your crab allowances wisely. You can include;
- Brussels sprouts
- spinach
- Swiss chards
- broccoli
- cabbage
Some people think of using multivitamin supplements; it is another way to satisfy your vitamin requirement! You can consider using multivitamins along with your keto diet as well.
Stay assured that your intake of vitamins will not kick you out of ketosis, when eaten as part of a balanced diet.
Check out our articles for more vitamins and supplements on a keto diet – learn which supplements you are likely to need and which you shouldn’t.
