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Get the Coumadin Cookbook!

Coumadin Book

This indispensable book includes:

• A primer on WHAT a Mediterranean-style diet is and WHY it's great for you
• 95+ delicious Coumadin safe recipes
• Information about managing your diet on Coumadin
• Ingredient and cooking tips throughout the book
• Complete Nutrition Facts, including Vitamin K content, for each recipe

Buy the paperback | Buy the eBook (PDF document)

Questions about ordering? Click here to read the FAQ.

How to order by mail: We are happy to accept personal checks drawn on a US bank for delivery within the United States only. Download the form to order by mail. We regret that we are unable to process orders by phone or ship printed books outside the United States.

Note: This is a revised and updated version of Dr. Harlan's The Dr. Gourmet Diet for Coumadin Users. These are the same recipes with updated Nutrition Information, with the addition of information on a Mediterranean-style diet.

How Much Vitamin K is in...?

Find out the exact amount of Vitamin K (in micrograms) of almost a thousand common foods! Listed both alphabetically and then in order of the amount of Vitamin K in the food, this list will help you know exactly how much Vitamin K you're eating. Just $4.95 for the eBook (PDF) or $12.95 for the paperback. Get your copy now!

It's easy to get answers about health and nutrition! Just send your question by email to [email protected] and Dr. Harlan will respond to selected questions of general interest. Answers will be posted in the Ask Dr. Gourmet newsletter (sign up now!) and archived in the Ask Dr. Gourmet section of the website.

Please note that the Ask Dr. Gourmet feature is restricted to questions regarding food and nutrition. Due to the many questions we receive, not all questions may be answered. For more specific questions about your individual health, please contact your doctor. About Timothy S. Harlan, MD, FACP, CCMS | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy


 

Ask Dr. Gourmet

Does freezing vegetables "kill" the Vitamin K?

My husband is on Coumadin. A friend told him that freezing vegetables "kills" the vitamin K. Is this true?

Dr. Gourmet Says...

two large clusters of broccoli

I am sorry, but your friend is incorrect. Freezing vegetables does not "kill" the Vitamin K they contain. In fact, it may increase the amount.

For instance, the reported amount of Vitamin K in 1 cup of frozen chopped broccoli is 143 mcg. This would be considered a very high amount of Vitamin K. A cup of raw chopped broccoli, by contrast, has only 93 mcg. This is because of the difference in volume that occurs during the freezing process, with frozen vegetables taking up less space.

Most vegetables are flash frozen near the fields where they are picked and often retain more of their essential nutrients, including vitamins and minerals, than when we have the fresh vegetable trucked across country to us.

If you are taking Coumadin® (warfarin), looking at the lists of ingredients that you will find in the links below can help guide you.

Basic list

http://www.drgourmet.com/md/warfarinbrief.pdf

List of foods with relative amounts of Vitamin K

http://www.drgourmet.com/md/relativewarfarinlist.pdf

Comprehensive list

http://www.drgourmet.com/md/warfarincomprehensive.pdf

Every recipe has a section of Special Diet Information that can help determine if a recipe might be safe for you if you are using Coumadin or have other health issues like Celiac Disease (or sensitivity), Acid Reflux, Lactose Intolerance, or need to be on a low-sodium diet.

The Ask Dr. Gourmet section on the website has a listing of questions that have been asked by readers like yourself.

In addition there is an easy way to find out about the nutrition content of any food. The USDA National Nutrient Database is at this link:

https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/index.html

Thanks for writing,

Timothy S. Harlan, MD, FACP
Dr. Gourmet

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I can't have broccoli or cauliflower because of its high Vitamin K levels - why is it in your recipes?
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Are there foods that interact with Coumadin even though they are low in Vitamin K?
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