Associations of dietary vitamin K and bone markers in adult Saudi females

• Main Authors: Samaher F. Alsadhan, Sobhy M. Yakout, Syed D. Hussain, Dara Al-Disi, Yousef M. Al-Saleh, Nasser M. Al-Daghri
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2020-07-01
• Series: Journal of King Saud University: Science
• Subjects: Vitamin K; Bone markers; Undercarboxylated osteocalcin; BMD
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1018364720301828

Objective: Osteoporosis is a bone disease characterized by bone mass reduction with a prevalence of approximately 34–48% in Saudi Arabia. Many risk factors can increase osteoporosis fracture, including low vitamin K levels. However, its exact role on bone mineral density (BMD) remains under investigated. This study aims to determine whether dietary vitamin K is associated with BMD, inflammation, undercarboxylated osteocalcin (ucOC) and other bone markers among adult Saudi females. Methods: A total of 138 Saudi females aged 25 and above were recruited from different primary health care centers in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and were divided according to BMD status (N = 53 normal; N = 85 low BMD). Each participant completed a food frequency questionnaire. Anthropometrics were measured and serum 25(OH)D and vitamin K, bone markers (ucOC and CTX) and cytokines (IL-6, TNF-α) were assessed using assays. Results: Low dietary vitamin K intakes were observed in both groups, ranging only 16–19 µg/day. A positive association was seen between dietary vitamin K and IL-6 in low BMD group and TNF-α in all participants. No significant association was seen between dietary vitamin K and BMD. Conclusion: Dietary vitamin K is significantly associated with inflammation and not BMD in adult Saudi females. The alarmingly low dietary vitamin K intake is worth investigating further.