Phylloquinone content of herbs, spices and seasonings

• Phylloquinone content of many culinary herbs, spices and seasonings was analyzed.
• Dried herbs are the richest in phylloquinone, followed by their fresh counterparts.
• Small amounts of herbs can increase vitamin K intake of individuals significantly.
• Patients on vitamin K antagonists should be cautious with their herb consumption.
• Infusion of vegetable oils with herbs raises their phylloquinone content slightly.

Culinary herbs and spices contain a variety of bioactive compounds including phylloquinone, the most common dietary form of vitamin K. In this study, we analyzed the phylloquinone content of a large number of commonly available culinary herbs, spices, and seasonings. Samples of fresh herbs (n = 19), dried herbs (n = 28), spices and seeds (n = 26), seasoning blends (n = 9), and other flavor enhancers (n = 11) were purchased in Montreal (Quebec, Canada) and Washington (DC, USA). All samples were analyzed in quadruplicate using standardized HPLC procedures. Most fresh herbs contained between 450 and 1200 μg of phylloquinone/100 g. Dried herbs were even richer with some (cilantro, marjoram, parsley) showing concentrations of ≈3000 μg/100 g. Phylloquinone content of spices and seeds was relatively low (5–250 μg/100 g), while being highly variable among seasoning blends (2.3–1878 μg/100 g). According to our results, portions of only 3 g of herbs can increase daily intakes of phylloquinone by up to 100 μg, contributing significantly to the daily vitamin K intake. Herbs can thus be important food sources of phylloquinone and should be accounted for when assessing vitamin K intakes in research or in patients treated with vitamin K antagonists. Future research should focus on the bioavailability of phylloquinone in these products.