Vitamin K2 And Erectile Dysfunction
Before you start taking vitamins for ED, you need to decide why you need them in the first place…
Because a man suffering from erectile dysfunction due to low hormone status is going to need an entirely different set of supplements than a man with a blood flow problem.
If you think you do have a hormone issue, caused by low levels of testosterone, you should read the info on this page first, as several of these herbs impact testosterone production.
If you’re not sure if you have low testosterone you should get tested. If that’s not possible, then ask yourself this question….
Does your ED come along with a side dish of low sex drive?
If so, this is a solid clue that you need to work on your male hormone status.
On the other hand, if you have plenty of libido, but can’t get a solid erection to back it up, chances are high that your issue is blood flow, so your pipes obviously need some attention.
If this is the case, you should download this (no charge)
I suggest you to take this situation very seriously because if the arteries leading to your penis are stiff or blocked, the same goes for the ones leading to your heart, so its important that you take action to remedy the situation.
Lets discuss this quickly before we move on…
Atherosclerosis and Erectile Dysfunction
When plaque builds up in the blood vessel walls, they begin to narrow which slows down the flow of blood.
Men dealing with this condition often have angina (chest pain after exertion), heart attacks, strokes, pain in the legs while walking (claudication) and erectile dysfunction.
Atherosclerosis affects men in different places at different times, but the penis is often affected first.
Why?
Because the vessels leading into the penis are very small and narrow to begin with, so it makes sense they would become blocked before the larger vessels leading to your heart.
So you should look at your ED as a warning sign and avoid the temptation to take Viagra or Cialis to treat the condition, because these drugs won’t fix the root cause of your problem.
In other words, they bring on the erection using blunt force, but do absolutely nothing to clear your damaged blood vessels.
So let’s talk about what can be done to clear this plaque and unblock your pipes so your penis will begin working properly again.
Vitamin K and ED
Your body uses vitamin K to produce a protein called matrix Gla-protein (MGP), an agent that prevents calcification of the smooth cell walls in your arteries.
In a recent trial, mice who were deprived of this substance suffered rapid and extensive vascular calcification.
In another trial done on rats, Warfarin, a blood thinner that that inhibits vitamin K recycling was given to the rodents, and after 6 short weeks they developed extensive calcification of the arteries.
Then, when they were taken off the Warfarin and given vitamin K, they experienced a 40 reduction in arterial calcification.
They also experienced a reduction in cell death of the artery walls and an increase in arterial elasticity, two items you need to achieve quality erections consistently.
Vitamin K is clearly a vital nutrient for artery health and erectile function, and the vast majority of you reading this are likely not getting enough.
Why?
Because most of us have stopped eating dairy and meat from grass-fed free range cattle, which contains a lot of vitamin K…and have switched to grain-fed factory meat and dairy, which contains very little.
So to increase your K levels, you either need to eat more grass-fed cattle and dairy, along with fermented foods which also contain K…or you need to supplement with vitamin K directly.
For the past several years, I’ve been using this supplement, which contains vitamin K2.
After taking it for 3 months I noticed that the plaque on the backside of my lower teeth completely disappeared, when using 4 caps every night before bed.
And this is despite the fact that I regularly consume grass-fed raw milk, so I clearly wasn’t drinking enough to meet my vitamin K requirements.
But there may be another reason to explain this plaque reversal…
This is a food based supplement that also comes packaged with vitamins D and A, two other nutrients that you need for proper functioning arteries and optimal hormone production.
For example..
Vitamin D deficiency early in life has been linked to hardening of the arteries in middle age…and low levels of vitamin A are associated with decreased production of testosterone in men…
And when you supplement with vitamin K in isolation, you miss out on both of these.
This explains why supplementing with products derived from whole foods is always more effective than taking individual vitamins in isolation.
Update:
I’m now recommending that all men over the age of 30 supplement with whole pomegranates or pomegranate juice in addition to the supplements discussed above.
Why?
Because pomegranate increases testosterone, boosts nitric oxide and reduces arterial plaque all at the same time.
Read my blog post on pomegranate for more info.
Vitamins For ED- Conclusion:
The vitamin K dosages in the Warfarin trial were fairly high and would be almost impossible to achieve through diet alone…
So I’d recommend that you supplement with vitamin K directly, preferably from a whole food source that comes packaged with vitamins A and D.
The day you begin, take note of any plaque on the backside of your teeth, and if it melts away over time you can be confident that this plaque reversal is also happening inside your arteries.
References:
The Mechanism of Vascular Calcification
Erectile Dysfunction in the Cardiac Patient
Role of Vitamin K and Vascular Calcification
Erectile Dysfunction Related to Endothelial Dysfunction
Vitamin K-Antagonists Accelerate Atherosclerotic Calcification
