Nattokinase 100mg 60 capsules helps maintain normal blood flow | AOR

AOR Nattokinase 100mg is an enzyme produced during the fermentation of a traditional Japanese condiment called natto, that helps to support cardiovascular system health. Natto has been consumed for thousands of years for its numerous health promoting properties.

Natto is boiled soybeans that have been fermented with a type of probiotic bacteria (Bacillus subtilis).
Nattokinase has been shown to break up or prevents blood clots from growing and becoming problematic. It does this through several mechanisms, including influencing the body’s natural enzymatic breakdown of blood clots. By aiding in the restoration of normal blood flow, it helps guard against cardiovascular diseases such as stroke, heart attack and thrombosis. Those with diets high in iron or whose genetic factors may involve a risk of blood clotting can benefit from this heart-healthy fermented product derived from whole food.

More recently, both clinical and non-clinical studies have demonstrated that nattokinase can help to promote heart and circulatory health by supporting normal blood clotting functions.
Just one capsule of AOR’s Nattokinase delivers 100 mg of pure nattokinase. Nattokinase activity is measured by the number of fibrinolytic units (FU). AOR’s Nattokinase is guaranteed to deliver 2000-2800 FU per serving.

key benefits

• supports cardiovascular health
• normalizes blood flow
• keeps arteries healthy and eleastic
• vegan-friendly, fermented, derived from whole food
• 2000-2800 fibrinolytic units of activity

background reading

As a source of nutrients, natto is an interesting study. Traditionally, it has been valued as a cardiovascular tonic. Modern biomedical research has teased out some of these effects. Most important are the two constituents often associated with natto 1) vitamin K2 (in the form of MK-7) and 2) nattokinase, a fibrin-dissolving enzyme. One of vitamin K’s most prominent roles is assisting with blood-clotting by helping to produce clotting-factors. Nattokinase, however, is involved in the opposite process. This is sometimes the conundrum with natto.

In fact, many health practitioners rightly advise patients taking blood thinning medication to avoid natto due to the vitamin K content. This is despite the support nattokinase may offer in helping balance clot formation and degradation. Others with soy allergies, or those who simply have a distaste for natto, cannot access the health benefits of natto. 

To clot or not to clot
The biochemical cascade that leads to blood-clotting, the first step in a wound healing, is both complex and life-preserving. Without it, a minor cut could lead to an untimely demise. At the center of this process is fibrin, a fibrous protein produced by an enzyme, thrombin, which is kicked-into gear when the body senses clotting is required. Upon healing the fibrin is covered over by normal tissue, while another set of proteins (e.g. plasmin) helps to dissolve the now unnecessary fibrin. This is the normal process at the site of a wound, but, as we age, the ability to dissolve fibrin tends to fall out of balance with the ability to create fibrin.

When fibrin accumulates in blood vessels, a process that is essential for normal maintenance and repair, blood begins to flow less freely. This can reduce oxygen flow to heart and brain tissue, resulting in suboptimal function. Meanwhile, the excess fibrin can make blood vessels less pliable and lead to elevated blood pressure. Nattokinase helps to maintain proper blood viscosity, fibrin levels and healthy circulation, all effects that draw support from research conducted at the National Cardiovascular Center in Japan.

Nattokinase in action
Nattokinase is believed to do a number of things in supporting circulatory health. First, it acts as a natural fibrinolytic (clot-dissolving) enzyme that helps support the body’s ability to regulate fibrin. In fact, this is why nattokinase is measured in terms of fibrinolytic units (FU). And some research suggests that nattokinase does this more effectively than the body’s own enzyme, plasmin, for this purpose.

Second, nattokinase appears to support normal levels of plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1). High levels of PAI-1 can negatively impact fibrin degradation by reducing the plasminogen levels that are critical to the production of plasmin. By maintaining normal levels of PAI-1, nattokinase supports the body’s own fibrin-dissolving mechanisms.

More recently, it has been suggested that fragments of nattokinase have complementary effects on circulatory health. Researchers found that these fragments interacted with angiotensin II, a peptide hormone that helps regulate blood pressure via action on other enzymes such as renin and acetycholineesterase. Whole nattokinase does not do this. However, such an effect has been observed with protein fragments from other foods sources, such as sesame and milk, so it should not be a huge surprise. Nevertheless, it does appear that a large fraction of nattokinase is absorbed whole from the digestive tract.

A growing number of human studies suggest nattokinase is helping to maintain healthy fibrin levels, flexible blood vessels, proper blood viscosity, and normal cell aggregation.

Each capsule offers 2000-2800 Fibrinolytic Units. Nattokinase is a fibrinolytic enzyme that promotes healthy circulation by its effects on serine protease-mediated digestion of fibrin.