Everyone remembers the good old days. Being a kid… your mother saying, “eat your spinach.” As unpleasant as it seemed then, good old mom said it for a reason: spinach (along with other green leafy vegetables) is high in Vitamin K, a unique vitamin very important to your health. Here’s why.
A lack of vitamin K, impairs blood coagulation, meaning that even little cuts can turn into heavy bleeding. Vitamin K deficiency also leads to brittle bones and causes the calcification of arteries and other soft tissues.
Sources of Vitamin K
While Vitamin K is available in supplements at your nearest pharmacy or health food store, it’s best, as always, to get it through your natural food supply. Thus, we’ve identified the best sources of Vitamin K here.
The reason why green leafy vegetables contain the most K is because it is directly involved in photosynthesis processes in these plants. The top source by far is Kale, one of the healthiest but lesser-known leafy greens out there.
After Kale, Spinach Greens, Mustard Greens, Beet Greens and Turnip Greens are all excellent sources of Vitamin K. Even the more commonly encountered Parsley is a good natural source of the vitamin. Broccoli and Brussels Sprouts are two other great sources of K.
That’s Great, But My Kids Won’t Eat These Vegetables.
What to say? The green leafy vegetables most high in Vitamin K are certainly no replacement for ice cream! It’s only natural that they are not high on most kids’ wish list. Here are a few tips for how to get them to appreciate these essential foods:
Start early: as with all tastes for different foods, early experience can last a lifetime. If your child is used to eating healthy food from an early age, it will seem less ‘strange’ than is this case with more kid-friendly foods.
Start with smaller portions: Ease your kids into the Vitamin K diet with a few pieces of these vegetables- preferably, tucked in ‘here and there’ with a stronger-tasting food that will take away some of the unpleasant taste of foods like spinach or broccoli.
Sweeten the deal: any number of condiments and side flavorings can be added to disguise the ‘vegetably’ taste accompanying these leafy greens. Try a squeeze of lemon or orange, or perhaps honey mustard on the side.
One Word of Warning- Allergies and Toxicity
While you really can’t get enough of the green leafy vegetables rich in Vitamin K, it is occasionally possible to cause allergic reaction. Natural forms of phylloquinone (vitamin K1) or menaquinone (vitamin K2) are quite alright to be eaten without concern for toxic reactions.
However, the synthetic form of vitamin K, vitamin K3 (menadione) has been found to cause toxic reactions. This is why the FDA has banned it from over-the-counter sales. As usual, the best solution for healthy living is to go to the source – the natural growing plants – to get your vitamin intake. Enjoy!