Vitamin D and K Foods for Bones: What to Eat

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The best vitamin D and K foods for bones are fatty fish, egg yolks and fortified milk for vitamin D, and leafy greens, natto, some cheeses and egg yolks for vitamin K. Vitamin D helps you absorb calcium, and vitamin K helps build it into bone, so the two work as a team.

As a NASM certified trainer and NESTA nutrition coach with more than 20 years in health and fitness, I see calcium get all the attention when women think about bones. Vitamin D and vitamin K rarely get a mention, yet calcium cannot do its job well without them.

This guide keeps it simple. You will learn what each vitamin does, which foods carry the most, and how to fit them into meals you already eat. Magnesium gets a short section too, since it works right alongside them.

Jump to a sectionIn this article12 sections

1. How Vitamin D and K Work with Calcium
2. Vitamin D Foods
3. Sunlight Basics
4. Vitamin K Foods for Bones
5. Magnesium Foods for Bones
6. Vitamin D and K Foods for Bones at a Glance
7. A Note on Warfarin and Vitamin K
8. Easy Ways to Eat More Vitamin D and K
9. Your This-Week Plan
10. When Food Is Not Enough
11. Quick Questions
12. The Bottom Line

How Vitamin D and K Work with Calcium

Think of calcium as the bricks, vitamin D as the delivery truck and vitamin K as the mortar.

• Vitamin D helps your gut absorb calcium. Without enough of it, you absorb only a small share of the calcium you eat.
• Vitamin K activates osteocalcin, a protein that binds calcium into bone. It also helps a second protein keep calcium out of places it should not build up.
• Magnesium helps turn vitamin D into its active form and is part of bone itself.

Studies link low vitamin D and low vitamin K intake with weaker bones and more fractures in older women. Food will not fix everything, but covering these three nutrients gives your calcium the best chance to be used well.

Vitamin D Foods

Most women up to age 70 need about 600 IU of vitamin D a day, and about 800 IU after 70. Very few foods carry much of it naturally, so it helps to know the best ones.

Fatty Fish

Fatty fish are the top natural source. Salmon, trout, sardines, mackerel and herring all count, and canned salmon or sardines with the soft bones bring calcium as well.

A 3-ounce serving of salmon can cover most or all of a day’s vitamin D. Aim for fatty fish twice a week.

Egg Yolks

The vitamin D in an egg is in the yolk, so skip the whites-only habit. One large egg gives a modest amount, about 40 to 50 IU.

Eggs also bring protein and a little vitamin K2, which makes them an easy bone-friendly breakfast.

Fortified Foods

In many countries milk, some yogurts, fortified plant milks, some orange juices and many breakfast cereals have vitamin D added. A cup of fortified milk gives roughly 100 to 120 IU.

Amounts vary a lot by brand, so check the label. Fortified foods are often the easiest daily source for women who do not eat much fish.

Mushrooms Exposed to UV Light

Some mushrooms are grown under UV light to boost their vitamin D. They are one of the few plant sources, though the type they contain may not raise blood levels as well as the vitamin D in fish and eggs.

Sunlight Basics

Your skin makes vitamin D when sunlight hits it, and for many people that is still the main source. How much you make depends on season, where you live, skin tone, age and sunscreen.

After menopause and with age, skin makes less vitamin D than it once did. In winter at northern latitudes, many women make little or none. That is why food matters, and why your doctor may suggest a blood test to see where you stand.

Use sensible sun habits and do not chase a burn for vitamin D. My guide to vitamin D deficiency causes and fixes explains the signs to watch for.

Vitamin K Foods for Bones

Vitamin K comes in two main forms. Both seem to help bone, and you can get both from food.

Vitamin K1: Leafy Greens

Vitamin K1 is found mostly in green plants. Kale, collard greens, spinach, turnip greens, Swiss chard, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, green beans and romaine all carry plenty.

A cup of cooked greens covers more than a day’s needs. Spinach is a fine K1 source even though its oxalates block most of its own calcium, so count it for vitamin K, not for calcium.

Vitamin K2: Fermented and Animal Foods

Vitamin K2 is found in fermented foods and some animal foods. Natto, a fermented soybean dish, is by far the richest source. Hard and soft cheeses such as Gouda, Edam and Brie, egg yolks, and chicken and dark meat carry smaller amounts.

Research on K2 and bone is still growing, and most of the strongest results come from studies in Japan where natto is common. You do not need to force down natto if you dislike it. Cheese and eggs are easier everyday options.

Magnesium Foods for Bones

About half of your body’s magnesium is stored in bone. It helps activate vitamin D, and low intake is linked with lower bone density.

Good magnesium foods include pumpkin seeds, almonds, cashews, black beans, white beans, edamame, tofu, quinoa, oats, dark leafy greens and avocado. A small handful of nuts or seeds a day goes a long way.

For a side-by-side look at the three nutrients, see my guide to calcium vs vitamin D vs magnesium.

Vitamin D and K Foods for Bones at a Glance

Here is a quick list to help you plan meals. Amounts are rough and vary by brand and portion.

Food	Serving	What It Gives
Salmon	3 ounces	Vitamin D, often most of a day, plus protein
Sardines	3 ounces	Vitamin D and calcium from the soft bones
Fortified milk	1 cup	About 100 IU of vitamin D and about 300 mg calcium
Eggs	2 large	Some vitamin D in the yolk, a little vitamin K2
Kale, cooked	1 cup	Far more than a day of vitamin K1, plus calcium
Broccoli	1 cup	Vitamin K1, vitamin C and a little calcium
Natto	1/4 cup	The richest vitamin K2 food
Gouda cheese	1 ounce	Some vitamin K2 and about 200 mg calcium
Pumpkin seeds	1 ounce	About a third of a day of magnesium

A Note on Warfarin and Vitamin K

If you take warfarin, vitamin K matters in a different way. Warfarin works against vitamin K, so big swings in how many greens you eat can change how the medicine works.

You do not usually need to avoid greens. The goal is to keep your vitamin K intake steady from week to week. Talk with your doctor or anticoagulation clinic before making changes, and never start a vitamin K supplement on your own.

Easy Ways to Eat More Vitamin D and K

These small habits add up without a full diet overhaul:

1. Eat fatty fish twice a week, fresh or canned.
2. Keep the yolks when you eat eggs.
3. Choose fortified milk, yogurt or plant milk, and check the label for vitamin D.
4. Add a cup of greens to one meal every day, cooked with a little olive oil so vitamin K absorbs better.
5. Use a small amount of aged cheese on salads or eggs.
6. Snack on pumpkin seeds or almonds for magnesium.

Your This-Week Plan

1. Plan two fatty fish meals, such as salmon on Monday and sardine toast on Thursday.
2. Have eggs for breakfast at least three times.
3. Add a side of kale, broccoli or collards to dinner every day.
4. Switch to a vitamin D fortified milk or plant milk.
5. Keep a jar of pumpkin seeds where you will see it.

When Food Is Not Enough

Vitamin D is the nutrient most women struggle to get from food alone, especially in winter or with little sun. A supplement may help, but the right dose depends on your blood level, so ask your doctor before you start. My guide to vitamin D for women over 40 covers the details.

Pair these nutrients with the right calcium foods in my guide to the best foods for bone density, and see the full bone health foods guide for the rest of the series.

Quick Questions

The Bottom Line

Vitamin D helps calcium get into your body, and vitamin K helps lock it into bone. Fatty fish, eggs and fortified foods cover vitamin D, while leafy greens, cheese and eggs cover vitamin K.

Add one of each to your plate most days, keep magnesium foods in the mix and check your vitamin D level with your doctor. Pair these foods with enough calcium, and avoid the habits in my guide to foods bad for bones, and your skeleton gets the full team it needs.

I am a certified personal trainer and nutrition coach, not a doctor, and this article is for education only. Talk with your doctor before changing your diet or adding supplements, especially if you take warfarin or another blood thinner, take bone medicines or have kidney problems.