A vitamin K2 ingredient in the menaquinone-7 form, MenaquinGold, was shown in a recent clinical study (Dilip S. Mehta et al., EC Neurology, 2021) appearing in the journal Neurology to support healthy nervous system function in patients with peripheral neuropathy due to either diabetes or from a vitamin B12 deficiency.
 
Peripheral neuropathy occurs as a result of damage to nerves located in peripheral areas of the body, usually in the hands and feet, and can result in weakness, numbness, and pain, and one of its most common causes is diabetes. Currently, there is no effective medical treatment of diabetic neuropathy.
 
In the clinical study, investigators administered either a supplement containing 100 mcg of MenaquinGold twice daily or a placebo for eight weeks, with a follow-up at 12 weeks. In total, 70 participants with a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes or B12 deficiency who had a neuropathy score of over four on the Visual Analog Scale were recruited. Throughout the course of the study, the researchers periodically assessed the participants’ symptoms of neuropathy through Visual Analog Scale assessments, and tracked changes in VAS scores across both the experimental and placebo groups.
 
For both groups, the average baseline VAS scores ranged from eight to nine, indicating severe self-assessed pain including tingling, prickling, and burning sensations, combined with weakness, numbness, and general fatigue, the authors of the study noted. By the end of week 8, the VAS scores of patients supplementing with MK-7 improved to an approximate range between three and four, independent of whether their neuropathy was caused by diabetes or B12 deficiency. By week 12, four weeks after discontinuing MK-7 and placebo supplements, the VAS score of patients who received MK-7 had VAS scores ranging from one to two.
 
Throughout the course of the study, patients receiving a placebo consistently had scores ranging between eight and nine, unchanged since baseline.
 
The authors concluded that the “study provides evidence linking the administration of MK-7 with the improvement in the debilitating pain, cramps, and symptoms of peripheral neuropathy in diabetes Type 2 and vitamin B12 deficiency – two distinct clinical conditions linked by symptomology and possibly underlying pathology.”
 
The authors proposed that the mechanism of action behind the benefits observed in MK-7 treatment may involve its impact on calcium pathways. “The intervention with the long-chain MK-7 in individuals with peripheral neuropathy may involve vitamin K in its calcium chaperone multitasking role, carboxylating and activating a family of proteins with the glutamic acid residues, which maintains the cardiovascular, immune, metabolic, neuromuscular, and bone-building functions,” lead author Dilip S. Mehta, chairman of Synergia Life Sciences, said.
 
Past Research
 
According to Synergia Life Sciences, the supplier of MenaquinGold, the present study validates previously-published research. In one past study, 100 participants with peripheral neuropathy consumed 100 mcg of MenaquinGold twice daily for eight weeks, and were followed up with four weeks afterward. All participants who received the supplement experienced marked reductions in intensity of symptoms such as numbness and tingling, and decreased occurrences of cramps. Of note was that the improvements were sustained a month after the end of the study period.
 
“Collectively, these studies offer a clear and compelling new role for vitamin K2 menaquinone-7 in a highly underserved market – that of nervous system health,” Dan Rosenbaum, president of Synergia USA, said.