In this episode of Supplement Source, CRN’s Jeff Ventura speaks with Dr. Leon Schurgers, professor of biochemistry of vascular calcification at Maastricht University, about new research examining vitamin K2 and cardiovascular health.
Dr. Schurgers takes us inside the VITAK-CAC trial, a placebo-controlled, double-blind study examining whether vitamin K2 as MK-7 can influence the progression of coronary artery calcification. He explains why calcification matters, how vitamin K-dependent proteins function in the vessel wall, and what researchers found after two years of supplementation—including a 29% lower increase in calcification in the MK-7 group compared with the control group.
The conversation also explores what the findings do—and do not—tell us about cardiovascular health, important considerations around vitamin K and medications, and the longer-term studies still needed to determine whether slowing calcification ultimately translates into fewer cardiovascular events.