The Vitamin K Shot Controversy: 4 Tips to Protect Your Baby Naturally

Aaand we’re back!

In part 1 of this series {read that here}, I broke down the basics and reasons for giving the vitamin K shot to newborns, along with the risks that this controversial practice carried. Now, it’s time to offer you some safe and natural alternatives to the vitamin K shot, so you can make the most informed decision for your babe. 

How to protect your baby naturally from vitamin K-deficient bleeding {VKDB}

1. Supercharge your diet while pregnant and in the weeks leading up to birth

Boost your intake of rich {natural} sources of vitamin K1 and K2, like these:

• Vitamin K1: Dark, leafy greens, broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage.
• Vitamin K2: Organ meats, grass-fed butter, aged cheeses, fermented foods, and egg yolks. Natto {fermented soybeans} is particularly high in K2. Not eating natto? No problem. This is a good quality K2 supplement {buy here}.

Caveat alert: There is some evidence that for most women, the vitamin K absorbed from foods is typically insufficient, so a supplement is likely needed {source}. More on that in a minute.

2. Sip alfalfa and nettle tea

This is powerful combo of vitamins and minerals, noted specifically to be high in vitamin K, as well as other pro-clotting agents for mom and babe to prevent bleeding. 

Recipe courtesy of Aviva Jill Romm, MD author of Naturally Healthy Babies and Children: A Commonsense Guide to Herbal Remedies, Nutrition, and Health. 

• ¼ ounce dried alfalfa leaves {buy here}
• ¼ ounce dried nettle leaves {buy here}
• 1 pint boiling filtered water

To prepare: Combine herbs in a glass mason jar {like this one}. Fill the jar with the boiling water, cover, and steep for 2 hours. Strain and drink 2 cups a day.

3. Opt for oral vitamin K

This alternative is safe, equally effective, and has no side effects. As described by Joseph Mercola, MD:

“Oral vitamin K is absorbed less efficiently than vitamin K that is injected. However, this can easily be compensated by adjusting the dose. And since vitamin K is non-toxic, there is no danger of overdosing or a bad reaction. If you are breastfeeding, your baby can be given several low oral doses of liquid vitamin K1 and receive the same protection from HDN as he would receive from an injection.

Ultimately, you should consult your pediatrician about the dose that is appropriate for your baby {source}.”

The Cochrane Collaboration has created the following dosing schedule {source}:

• 1 milligram liquid vitamin K weekly, OR
• 0.25 milligram liquid vitamin K daily

Buy oral vitamin K here. Again, consult your pediatrician about specific dosing. I’m not a physician, nor do I play one on TV. 

4. Decline delivery assistance methods

These include forceps or vacuum extraction, and for the love of all that is sacred, unless it is 100% medically necessary {and not out of convenience}, avoid delivery via c-section. These interventions can cause unintended trauma, increasing the risk of VKDB. Talk to your physician or midwife well before junior’s birthday so there is no question what you want included {or not, in this case} in your birth plan.

My personal story

As a registered nurse trained in modern medicine, the crunchier version of me took a radically different approach to birthing my second daughter, and with the exception of my sweet Aja making her debut at home {I opted for a birthing center with my midwife}, I took a more holistic approach, that, you guessed it, included declining the vitamin K shot.

My plans involved all of the above-mentioned mitigation strategies to boost my baby girl’s clotting factor. My midwife was forewarned about my renegade nature, but the pediatrician doing rounds was not. Without surprise, I received a tongue-lashing, bullying, and grave warning that I was being reckless and irresponsible with my child’s health, and subsequently got a nice visit from the social services department upon my release with the potential that I might be paid a visit at home by a social worker {it never happened – victory!}. After all, it was “protocol” to browbeat educated, informed, and loving parents into thinking they were doing their child harm by refusing such “standard, routine, and harmless” medical practices {their words, not mine}.

The end result?

No VKDB and my {now nearly one year old} baby girl is doing her thing, which at the moment, happens to be tearing up my cabinets, sampling dog food and dust bunnies, and rearranging sock drawers to her liking. Just another day in the awesome life of being a mama that I wouldn’t change for the world.

I’m confident that we made the right decision, but this is not one to be taken lightly.  My story is by no means intended to provide you with medical advice. My intent is to share my personal story, experience as an RN, and provide you with information to make the best decision for you and your baby. That is all. This information is purely for educational purposes and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Note: to make this as fair and balanced as this critical topic deserves, this is the most comprehensive and well-written article on the subject in favor OF the vitamin K shot in newborns. Ironically, it was published shortly after I concluded this draft.

See? I’m not totally one-sided.

Let’s keep the conversation going. Tell me, what standard and routine medical practices have you declined for your baby, and did you get backlash {from doctors, nurses, family, or friends} for those decisions?

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