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Why You Need To Supplement With Vitamin D3 And Vitamin K2 This Fall

Why You Need To Supplement With Vitamin D3 And Vitamin K2 This Fall | Growing Up Herbal | Wanna keep your kid health this fall? You may need to add in a vitamin d3/k2 supplement. Here's why.

Inside: Learn why you need to supplement with vitamin d3 and vitamin k2 to keep your child’s heart and bones healthy. Plus, enter for a chance to win a vitamin d3/k2 supplement from Raise Them Well that will help you keep your child’s vitamin d level in a healthy range year round. This natural supplement not only tastes great, but it’s super easy to use and kids love it! Enter for a chance to win a bottle of vitamin d3/k2 drops at the end of this post!

When I had my first child, I felt overwhelmed with all the things I needed to learn about in order to raise him naturally. There was breastfeeding and introducing solids, there were baby skin care products and diapering choices, and of course there were choices to make about vaccines, medications, and nutritional supplements. The list could go on and on for miles!

Seeing how Judah was born in May, I had to decide fairly quickly what to do about sun exposure and whether or not to use sunscreen. 

Since he was so little, I knew I wouldn’t be exposing him to a lot of direct sunlight, but I also knew that it would be good for him to be outside a good bit, even if it was in the shade. I’d read that sunscreen wasn’t recommended for infants, mostly due to the chemicals, but what about homemade sunscreen? Would that be okay? And what about vitamin d? Would he get enough of it from the little sun he was exposed to and through breastmilk, or did I need to supplement with a vitamin d supplement?

And so, my quest for information on vitamin d began.

Why You Need To Supplement With Vitamin D3 And Vitamin K2 This Fall | Growing Up Herbal | Wanna keep your kid health this fall? You may need to add in a vitamin d3/k2 supplement. Here's why.

Vitamin D: The Basics

There’s a good bit of information out there on vitamin d and why you need it, but basically it boils down to this. 

  • Vitamin d is a must-have vitamin. (Yes, you have to have it to be healthy.)
  • It helps your body assimilate calcium. (Hello… strong bones, teeth, and healthy cardiovascular, nerve, and hormone function.)
  • It helps your immune system to be on guard. (Think coffee to your body’s t-cells.)
  • You get vitamin d via sun exposure, food, and supplements (A D3 supplement is best).

So, in my young mama mind, if I simply exposed my kiddo to the sun, unprotected, for at least 20 minutes a day and fed him healthy food, that would give him sufficient levels of vitamin d.

Sounds great, right? I mean, come on… sign this mama up! 

Unfortunately, that’s not all there is to it.

The Other Side To Vitamin D

You see, there’s more to getting the health benefits of vitamin d than simply getting the right amount of it every day (whether from the sun or a supplement). You also need sufficient amounts of vitamin k2 to get the job done right… and safely.

As you know, new research is always being done. We’re now learning that unless you live in an area where you get decent sun exposure year round and have a diet high in seafood, grass-fed meat and dairy, and fermented foods, you most likely need to supplement with vitamin d3 and vitamin k2.

K-What?

Vitamin K2 comes from a certain bacteria that’s found in some fermented foods. You can get it in healthy fats from grass-fed animals (think butter, milk, cheese, egg yolks, etc.) too. It works alongside vitamin d to help the body better assimilate calcium for healthy bones and teeth (Mercola, 2015). 

This is basically how it works. 

There’s always this fine balance or shifting of calcium in your blood stream. If blood calcium levels get too low, vitamin d triggers the bones to release calcium so there’s more of it in the blood. If blood calcium levels get too high, vitamin d triggers the body to absorb some of it and store it back in the bones (Anthony, 2006).

It’s this reabsorption of calcium that can be an issue, though. If there’s too much calcium in the blood, problems can occur with basic body functions, the bones are weaker (aka… osteoporosis), and calcium can build up in blood vessels (ever heard of hardening of the arteries??) and in soft tissue (calcifications). This is where vitamin d AND vitamin k2 come into play.

Vitamin d triggers the body to reabsorb calcium with the help of vitamin k2. Vitamin k2 binds the excess calcium in the blood stream and then directs it to where it needs to go elsewhere in the body (Mercola, 2015). They both work, together, to keep your heart and bones strong and healthy.

Why You Need To Supplement With Vitamin D3 And Vitamin K2 This Fall | Growing Up Herbal | Wanna keep your kid health this fall? You may need to add in a vitamin d3/k2 supplement. Here's why.

Is Your Kid Getting Enough Vitamin D Year Round?

So let me ask you, mama… “Is your child getting enough vitamin d.”

I asked myself this question recently, and honestly, my answer was “no.” 

You see, during the summer months, I’d say yes, for sure. I mean, we’re outside in the sun, we’re drinking raw cows milk from grass-fed cows, and we eat a good bit of seafood during the warmer months. However, as the cooler months set in, we don’t get enough sun exposure, the cows go from munching on grass all day to being supplemented with hay and sometimes grain, and we eat less food that contains vitamin d. 

Maybe You Need To Supplement With Vitamin D3 And Vitamin K2

Now, I’m not a huge fan of supplements, but as I continue to learn about nutrition and healthy eating, I can definitely see that our diet isn’t perfect and there are areas we may need some help with every now and then. 

I imagine it’s the same for you. Am I right? We’re not perfect “natural mamas.” We’re striving and pushing forward. Progress over perfection, right?

Seeing how I recently came to this realization, I’ve decided to supplement with vitamin d3 and vitamin k2 during the colder months.

Sure, we’ll still get some sun but not enough to produce sufficient levels of vitamin d. Sure, we’ll still eat some grass-fed fats and seafood but probably not enough for our vitamin d levels to be in a healthy range. This is why I’ve chosen to supplement with vitamin d3 and vitamin k2, and when it comes to my kids, I think I’ve found the perfect supplement for them!

Enter… Emily & Raise Them Well

I met Emily on Instagram. (If you’re not following me on Instagram yet, you totally should be!)

She’s a mom, like me. She strives to live a healthy lifestyle, keep the toxins to a minimum, feed her kiddos real food, and love them as best as she knows how. (Isn’t that what all of us mamas do?) However, she also knows that life isn’t perfect, that she isn’t perfect, and that living 100% naturally is a great goal to strive for, but that she needs some help along the way. And you know what? I’m right there with her. 

So, Emily and her husband (who’s also a natural-minded pediatrician) decided that they needed good quality healthy supplements to help them take better care of their kiddos (especially since it often feels impossible to eat the perfect diet). This lead them to create the company Raise Them Well. Now, I’m not going to tell you all about their company or the products they offer. If you wanna check them out, you can do so here.

Instead, I want to tell you how their company can help you keep your kiddos vitamin d levels in the right place during these upcoming cold winter months (depending on where you live of course)

Why You Need To Supplement With Vitamin D3 And Vitamin K2 This Fall | Growing Up Herbal | Wanna keep your kid health this fall? You may need to add in a vitamin d3/k2 supplement. Here's why.

Vitamin D3/K2 Drops From Raise Them Well 

This fall and winter, in addition to our cod liver oil supplement, I’ll be giving my kids daily doses of Raise Them Well’s vitamin d3/k2 drops. Not only do these drops contain vitamin d3, but they contain vitamin k2 mk-7 as well, which is awesome. I’m not sure if you’ve noticed or not, but most children’s vitamin d supplements do not contain vitamin k2. And, as I explained above, it’s really important that if you supplement vitamin d in your child’s diet that you supplement vitamin k2 as well. 

Well, here it is, mama… all wrapped up in a nice neat little bottle. 

This vitamin d3/k2 supplement is made with non-GMO oils, it contains the USDA recommended amount of each vitamin per drop (400 IU of vitamin d3 and 10 mcg of vitamin k2), and there are 365 drops per bottle. 

Now, let me just say that I will be giving my kids more than one drop a day seeing how experts agree that 400 IU is way too low. Dr. Mercola has shared his recommendations for vitamin d dosages for different age groups here, and he also has a great map that shows how likely you are to get enough vitamin d from the sun in October if you live in the US.

Now, because I’m loving this supplement so much, I’ve asked Emily if she would partner with me and offer you the chance to win some vitamin d3/k2 drops this month so you can supplement with vitamin d3 and vitamin k2 and help keep your kiddos vitamin d levels where they should be. 

And guess what? She said yes!!

Enter To Win Some Free Vitamin D3/K2 Drops For Your Kids

Why You Need To Supplement With Vitamin D3 And Vitamin K2 This Fall | Growing Up Herbal | Wanna keep your kid health this fall? You may need to add in a vitamin d3/k2 supplement. Here's why.

Okay, if you too want to supplement with vitamin d3 and vitamin k2 to keep you kids a bit healthier during the cold winter months, this is for you.

About The Giveaway

Raise Them Well is giving away a bottle of their vitamin d3/k2 drops to two winners. This giveaway will run from today, October 20th to Thursday, October 27th. Winners will be announced right here on the giveaway form below on Friday, October 28th and contacted via email. Winners must respond with their shipping addresses by Sunday, October 30th or a new winner will be chosen. 

How To Enter

Entries are easy using the form below and nothing is mandatory. Entries vary in their value… some get your name in the bucket more than others! Some entries are 1-time entries and others you can do on a daily basis. Remember, the more entries you have, the better the chance you have of winning!

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW OVER.

Best of luck, mama. Now it’s your turn!!
Do you do anything special to boost your child’s vitamin d levels during the cooler months of fall and winter? Share with me in the comments below?

REFERENCES:

  • Anthony, M. (2006, April 4). Wellness Foods: Vitamin D and Calcium Work Together. Retrieved October 20, 2016, from http://www.foodprocessing.com/articles/2006/068/
  • Mercola, J. (2015, June 28). Vitamin K2 Benefits: The Missing Nutrient for Heart and Bone. Retrieved October 20, 2016, from http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2015/06/28/vitamin-k2-health-benefits.aspx#!
  1. LaToya Edwards says:

    I have been supplementing D3 for years but didn’t know about vitamin k. I’ve been using chewables but that got expensive when I learned how much each of my boys needed. I’d love to try these drops.

  2. M. says:

    This would be a blessing for me, a busy mama! Thanks!

  3. Petra says:

    i bought a vitamin d supplement in our health store

  4. Katherine Horton says:

    We’ve been using vitamin D for just about 2 years, but never heard of the relationship and need of Vit k. Thank you so much for the informative post. What do you suggest for a daily overall vitamin? My middle daughter seems to always get sick and she needs something extra in her regimen.

  5. MaryEllen says:

    My daughter-in-law gives my granddaughter Vitamin D3 drops, but I’d love for her to have this brand!

  6. Joy Carlton says:

    I just presently try to keep him outside for a few hours every day.

  7. Heather Butow says:

    We use D drops & I have never seen them with the vitamin k in them. Thanks for the opportunity to win some! Fingers crossed!

  8. Cara Black says:

    I honestly never even thought about supplementing with vitamin D til some friends mentioned some supplements that kept THEIR family healthy year round.(I am so new to the natural life, lol). I always thought their children’s multis had it covered! So….now I definitely needed this article!

  9. Yemaya Kimmel says:

    We make sure to spend plenty of time in the sun! This can be hard in the winter on the Humboldt Coast where it can be foggy and rainy. We also drink tons of nettles infusion, which has vitamin K, but not sure if that works the same as K2? We are interested in trying the drops.

    • Meagan says:

      Thanks for sharing, Yemaya! I wanted to quickly let you know that you’re right nettle and vitamin k. Nettle does contain vitamin k, but it’s not the same as vitamin k2. They work in different ways.

  10. Elizabeth Crawford says:

    We just go outside! Southern Cali family here so not too much rain these days.. take the good with the bad right?

  11. Jessica Pike says:

    From the reading I’ve done over at Weston A Price, they typically recommend a cod liver oil with butter oil so that you can receive the A and D from CLO and vitamin K from the butter oil. I haven’t tried it yet but am hoping to add it this winter for my littles- last season was too rough and I don’t want a repeat!

  12. Kay M says:

    My 4yr old son has Cystic Fibrosis so Vitamin D3 and K2 are part of his vitamin regimine. I would love to try this product!!! Thank you!!! And for the record, his pulmonologist didn’t understand why i gave him K2. ??? Crazy.

  13. Renee says:

    I haven’t been supplementing vit d (or vit k) at all since I ran out so this would be a great step back on the bandwagon.

  14. Charity Crawford says:

    We started taking the vitamin D you suggested from raise them well seem to like it so far and on another note also tried out some of their foam body wash for kids and love it!

    Thanks for great information and resources.

    • Meagan says:

      You’re so welcome! I’ve not tried their body wash, but I’ve loved their other products so far so I’m sure it’s as great as you say!

  15. Becca S. says:

    We take vitamin D but I hadn’t heard about using vitamin k as well- thanks for this. Since our family lives near Seattle we don’t see the sunshine nearly often enough and just take it year round except when we’re in the dead of summer. It’s helped a lot with energy and moods and also just staying healthy! These drops sound like a good regimen to get everything in one place.

    • Meagan Visser says:

      Yes, vitamin D and K are a great combo! Glad you found this post helpful!

      • Daryl Martell says:

        Hi Meagan!
        I’m a grandpa three times over. I’m very proud of my grandsons. I am health conscious and in my early 70’s. I too am a born again believer in Christ, as is my wife. We like Dr Mercola also. His knowledge of supplements is so professional and his line of products are very good and well researched. So many supplement manufacturers are out there, it’s vitally important to choose wisely, as you have done for your family.
        I wanted to let you know I enjoyed your blog. God bless! Stay in touch!
        In Christ, Daryl Martell

        • Meagan Visser says:

          Thanks so much, Daryl, and I’m glad you’re enjoying what you read here. And yes, Dr. Mercola is great! Thanks for your comment!

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