Effect on bone anabolic markers of daily cheese intake with and without vitamin K2: a randomised clinical trial, 2022, Helge Einar Lundberg

Abstract

Background Daily intake of 57 g Jarlsberg cheese has been shown to increase the total serum osteocalcin (tOC). Is this a general cheese effect or specific for Jarlsberg containing vitamin K2 and 1,4-dihydroxy-2naphtoic acid (DHNA)?

Methods 66 healthy female volunteers (HV) were recruited. By skewed randomisation (3:2), 41 HV were allocated to daily intake of 57 g Jarlsberg (J-group) and 25–50 g Camembert (C-group) in 6 weeks. After 6 weeks the C-group was switched to Jarlsberg. The study duration was 12 weeks with clinical investigations every 6 weeks. The main variables were procollagen type 1 N-terminal propeptide (PINP), tOC, carboxylated osteocalcin (cOC) and the osteocalcin ratio (RO) defined as the ratio between cOC and undercarboxylated osteocalcin (ucOC). Serum cross-linked C-telopeptide type I collagen (CTX), vitamin K2, lipids and clinical chemistry were used as secondary variables.

Results PINP, tOC, cOC, RO and vitamin K2 increased significantly (p<0.01) after 6 weeks in the J-group. PINP remained unchanged in the C-group. The other variables decreased slightly in the C-group but increased significantly (p≤0.05) after switching to Jarlsberg. No CTX-changes detected in neither of the groups.

Serum lipids increased slightly in both groups. Switching to Jarlsberg, total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol were significantly reduced (p≤0.05). Glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c), Ca++ and Mg++ were significantly reduced in the J-group, but unchanged in the C-group. Switching to Jarlsberg, HbA1c and Ca++ decreased significantly.

Conclusion The effect of daily Jarlsberg intake on increased s-osteocalcin level is not a general cheese effect. Jarlsberg contain vitamin K2 and DHNA which increases PINP, tOC, cOC and RO and decreases Ca++, Mg++ and HbA1c. These effects reflect increased bone anabolism and a possible reduced risk of adverse metabolic outcomes.

https://nutrition.bmj.com/content/early/2022/06/29/bmjnph-2022-000424

 

Gouda is also good source of vitamin K2 menaquinone, ranging from MK-4 to MK-9.

 

So if one is at risk from osteoporosis, Jarlsberg is likely to be more useful to you than cheddar in terms of calcium uptake/usefulness to bone density?

 

I couldn't stick Jarlsberg for six weeks on end.
Gouda, maybe.

 

Did they test cheddar? I've just read the abstract and noted Camembert which I thought was strange if the only comparator to then call 'general cheese' given it is soft cheese.

Given my personal preferences I'd really be looking to confirm whether cheddar, particularly melted cheddar does me 'enough' good and at what quantity and if not what the least tangy/mature replacement would be

 

It's less available in the UK since Brexit, of places that used to sell it I.e. everywhere, many no longer sell it.

Of course this may depend on a person's cheese budget.

I haven't been able to find a lump, as opposed to slices or a very thin and useless wedge, for years. I used to.buy it several times a year, but stopped as what I could find was junk.

 

Here are a list of cheeses:

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/324225671_Menaquinone_Content_of_Cheese

Conclusions
In conclusion, we have found that cheese and curd are the most important sources of long-chain
menaquinones in the Western diet but that the actual menaquinone content varies substantially and is
dependent on the type of cheese, the time of ripening, the fat content and the geographic area where
this is produced. In general, hard cheeses contain more menaquinones than soft cheeses. Given the fact
that several authors have reported poor vitamin K status to be a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases
while the most recent meta-analyses suggest no clear evidence for adverse cardiovascular effects of
dairy fats, cheese should be considered as a recommendable component in a heart-healthy diet.

 

This is good news.
I definitely eat a cheese heavy diet

That’s ALL types of cheese, my current favourite being Emmental.

 

Gouda is one of my favourites but has become almost unavailable here.

 

i was just picking cheddar as a random, common, general cheese, not as a specific comparator. My question was more about whether i had interpreted correctly that this was an issue related to helpfulness for bone density issues - which i have - ie jarlsberg/high K2 cheeses are better for that issue than cheeses lower in K2?

 

I've a friend who knows way more about food than I do --- his advice is any sheep's milk cheese --- seems there are even some English/UK cheeses made from sheep's milk (haven't tried them though).

 

Sheep's milk cheese is yummy. And goat’s too.