A recent analysis of 7,857 adults with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) from NHANES 2005–2018 highlights the importance of vitamin K in long-term survival. By linking dietary data with National Death Index records, researchers found that higher log-transformed vitamin K intake (ln[VK]) significantly reduced all-cause mortality over a 180-month follow-up. Each 1-unit increase in ln[VK] lowered mortality risk by 19% (HR 0.81; 95% CI 0.67–0.98). Advanced modeling using restricted cubic splines uncovered a U-shaped relationship, identifying 121 µg/day as the optimal intake threshold. Below this level, vitamin K offered a remarkable 33% reduction in mortality risk, whereas higher intakes showed no additional benefit. The predictive model demonstrated strong accuracy (AUC 0.832), and results held steady across multiple sensitivity and subgroup analyses.These findings provide compelling evidence that moderate vitamin K intake can play a protective role in NAFLD, supporting tailored dietary strategies for improved patient outcomes.
