Vitamin K2 - which is found in some fermented foods and is not the same as regular Vitamin K - is an interesting compound because it does something that no other joint pain supplement does. In a powerful 1-2 Punch, Vitamin K2 delivers two unique benefits:
1 - Vitamin K2 Reduces Chronic Inflammation. A major factor in joint health is chronic inflammation. Unlike the local inflammation that happens when you sprain a joint to help it recover, this chronic inflammation is a low level condition that places a low level of stress on your joints at all times.
This low level stress contributes to the constant ache in some joints that can become a constant companion for some of us. This means that reducing it can help your joints recover faster and more completely after stressing them when you roll or during training, leading to less residual tension and pain.
2 - Vitamin K2 Directs Calcium to Your Bones and Joints. Another factor in joint health is your bone health. Since your joints usually connect the ends of two bones together, the health of those bones is a big part of the health of your joints.
An important part of bone health is bone density, which is how much calcium you have in your bones. While we all know that calcium is important for bone health, what is less known is that calcium doesn’t automatically go there.
What research is finding is that calcium has to be “told” by Vitamin K2 to go to the bones. Without it the calcium you eat or take as a supplement can end up in other places like the heart.
This also means that a deficiency in Vitamin K2 can make it harder for the body to repair the stress applied to the bony parts of the joint structure. This starts to add up over time and leads to increased pain and stiffness.