The Danger With "Life-Saving" Vitamin K Shots

Part of the midwife’s or doctor's to-do-list when your baby is born is an injection of Vitamin K. Vitamin K is used in order to help with blood clotting abilities. This mostly pertains to prevent the very rare incidence of bleeding in the brain (risk 1 in every 10,000 live births). This seems pretty reasonable, right? This shot prevents a deadly thing from happening, but is it really safe?

The Vitamin K that is in these shots is not natural, like the kind found in leafy greens, but is synthetic, with the generic name phytonadione. Synthetic vitamins should be avoided, as they cause imbalances in the body. For example, synthetic Vitamin A causes birth defects that natural Vitamin A prevents!

How much Vitamin K is actually in the shot? The recommended dosage for infants is 10-20 micrograms per day, but the amount of Vitamin K administered to the infants is 0.5 to 1.0 mg, the national standard mandated by most states for US hospitals is over 100 times the infant’s RDA of this nutrient. Studies have also linked large amounts of Vitamin K with childhood cancers and leukemia.

The medical sciences do not understand the metabolic fate of Vitamin K. Little to no traces of Vitamin K show in urine or bile. Since Vitamin K is fat soluble, it has the ability to accumulate in body tissues. A newborn’s liver is not fully developed until 3-4 days after birth, so the child cannot metabolize Vitamin K along with the following chemicals that are in the injection:

-Phenol (carbolic acid-derived from coal tar)
-Benzyl Alcohol (preservative)
-Propylene Glycol (better known as antifreeze)
-Acetic Acid (astringent, antimicrobial agent)
-Hydrochloric Acid
-Lecithin
-Castor Oil

Instead of injecting your children with a potentially harmful cocktail of chemicals, take a natural Vitamin K supplement and make sure to eat lots of food rich in Vitamin K, like spinach, parsley, and kale, especially before giving birth. A liquid supplement administered orally to the child consistently after birth is a great alternative, as well.