Understanding the Nutritional Link: What Vitamin Deficiency Makes You Bleed?

October 21, 2025 •

4 min read

While excessive bleeding might suggest a serious medical condition, a vitamin K deficiency is a well-established cause of impaired blood clotting. This critical nutrient is vital for producing coagulation factors that stop bleeding after injury. In severe cases, knowing what vitamin deficiency makes you bleed can point toward a potentially life-threatening but treatable issue.

Quick Summary

A deficiency in vitamin K is the primary nutritional cause of bleeding due to its role in producing essential blood-clotting proteins. Another deficiency, in vitamin C, can cause easy bruising and bleeding gums, a condition known as scurvy. Addressing dietary intake and underlying health issues is crucial for treatment.

Key Points

Vitamin K is the Primary Cause: A deficiency in vitamin K is the most direct nutritional cause of bleeding because it impairs the body's blood-clotting mechanism.
Scurvy is Caused by Vitamin C Deficiency: Severe vitamin C deficiency leads to scurvy, which causes bleeding gums and easy bruising due to weakened connective tissues.
Newborns are at High Risk: Newborns have very low vitamin K reserves, which is why a vitamin K injection is standard procedure to prevent life-threatening bleeding.
Malabsorption and Medication Can Cause Deficiency: Certain health conditions and medications, like antibiotics and blood thinners, can interfere with vitamin K absorption and synthesis.
Dietary Intake is Key for Prevention: A diet rich in green leafy vegetables (for vitamin K) and fresh fruits and vegetables (for vitamin C) is the best defense against these deficiencies.
Seek Medical Advice for Bleeding: Unexplained bleeding or bruising requires medical evaluation to determine the underlying cause and ensure timely, appropriate treatment.

The Primary Culprit: Vitamin K

When the body lacks vitamin K, it cannot produce the proteins necessary for blood coagulation, leading to increased bleeding. While a vitamin K deficiency is rare in healthy adults, it poses a significant risk to newborns and individuals with malabsorption issues. This fat-soluble vitamin plays a central role in blood clotting, bone metabolism, and heart health.

Symptoms of Vitamin K Deficiency

Excessive bleeding is the most prominent sign of a vitamin K deficiency and can manifest in various ways.

Common symptoms include:

Easy and unexplained bruising
Excessive bleeding from minor cuts, punctures, or injection sites
Nosebleeds (epistaxis) and bleeding from the gums
Black, tar-like stools containing blood (melena) or blood in the urine (hematuria)
Heavy menstrual periods (menorrhagia)
Blood collection under the nails (splinter hemorrhages)

In newborns, vitamin K deficiency bleeding (VKDB) is a medical emergency that can lead to life-threatening intracranial hemorrhage. This is why all newborns are routinely given a vitamin K injection at birth.

Causes and Risk Factors

Several factors can contribute to a vitamin K deficiency, even with a diet rich in the nutrient.

Malabsorption Disorders: Conditions such as celiac disease, cystic fibrosis, and inflammatory bowel diseases can prevent the body from properly absorbing fat-soluble vitamins, including vitamin K.
Medications: Long-term use of certain medications, particularly antibiotics, can eliminate the gut bacteria that produce vitamin K. Blood thinners like warfarin are designed to interfere with vitamin K metabolism, so their dosage must be carefully managed.
Poor Diet: While rare in healthy adults, an extremely low-fat diet or one lacking green leafy vegetables can lead to deficiency.
Newborns: Infants are born with very low vitamin K reserves because little is passed through the placenta, and their gut bacteria have not yet developed.

The Secondary Factor: Vitamin C and Scurvy

While less directly related to blood clotting proteins, a severe deficiency in vitamin C can cause bleeding due to its impact on tissue and blood vessel integrity. Vitamin C is essential for producing collagen, a protein vital for skin, gums, bones, and blood vessels. Without enough vitamin C, these structures weaken, leading to bleeding and other health problems. The severe form of this deficiency is called scurvy.

How Scurvy Causes Bleeding

Bleeding gums and easy bruising are hallmark signs of scurvy. The breakdown of collagen results in weakened capillaries, which can lead to:

Swollen, spongy, and bleeding gums
Tiny red or blue spots on the skin (petechiae)
Larger bruises (ecchymoses) under the skin
Bleeding into the joints
Poor wound healing, with previously healed wounds potentially reopening

Distinguishing Vitamin K and Vitamin C Deficiencies


Feature	Vitamin K Deficiency	Vitamin C Deficiency (Scurvy)
Primary Function	Blood clotting (producing coagulation factors)	Collagen synthesis (maintaining tissue and vessel integrity)
Main Symptom	Excessive bleeding and poor clotting	Bleeding gums, easy bruising, skin issues
Affected System	Primarily blood coagulation pathways	Connective tissues, especially blood vessels
Blood Test Marker	Prothrombin Time (PT) and INR will be elevated	Low plasma ascorbic acid level
Common Cause (Adults)	Malabsorption, medication interference	Poor diet lacking fresh fruits/vegetables

Diagnosis and Treatment

If you or a loved one experience unexplained bleeding or severe bruising, consulting a doctor is essential for a proper diagnosis. A medical professional will take a history and may order blood tests to measure clotting time (PT/INR) and vitamin levels.

Treatment for either deficiency is typically straightforward. Vitamin K deficiency is treated with oral, subcutaneous, or intravenous vitamin K supplements. Scurvy is treated with vitamin C supplements and increasing dietary intake of vitamin C-rich foods.

Increasing Your Intake Through Diet

Following a nutritious diet rich in these key vitamins is the best preventative measure..

Foods rich in Vitamin K include:

Dark leafy greens: Kale, spinach, and turnip greens
Cruciferous vegetables: Broccoli and Brussels sprouts
Other sources: Cheese, eggs, soybeans, and vegetable oils

Foods rich in Vitamin C include:

Citrus fruits: Oranges and grapefruits
Berries: Strawberries, blueberries, and blackcurrants
Vegetables: Bell peppers, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts
Other sources: Cantaloupe, papaya, and kiwis

Conclusion

While the sight of unexpected bleeding can be alarming, understanding the nutritional factors at play is the first step toward effective treatment. The primary cause of a deficiency-induced bleeding disorder is a lack of vitamin K, which directly impacts blood clotting proteins. A less common but severe deficiency in vitamin C, known as scurvy, can also cause bleeding due to its effect on tissue integrity. Both conditions are preventable and treatable through proper dietary intake and, in some cases, supplementation. Consulting a healthcare provider for any persistent or unexplained bleeding is crucial for accurate diagnosis and management, paving the way for a swift recovery and improved health. For more detailed information on preventing vitamin deficiencies, consider visiting the CDC website to review their guidance on nutrient needs.

Frequently Asked Questions

A severe deficiency of vitamin K is most likely to cause significant bleeding because this vitamin is essential for synthesizing the proteins that clot blood.

Yes, a severe lack of vitamin C, leading to a condition called scurvy, can cause swollen and bleeding gums due to the degradation of connective tissue.

Newborns have low vitamin K reserves at birth, and breast milk is low in the vitamin. Their intestines also lack the bacteria to produce it, which is why they receive a preventative injection.

A doctor can diagnose a vitamin K deficiency using a Prothrombin Time (PT) test, which measures how long it takes for your blood to clot.

Excellent food sources of vitamin K include dark leafy greens such as kale and spinach, as well as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, eggs, and vegetable oils.

Scurvy is caused by a severe, prolonged deficiency of vitamin C, most often due to a diet lacking in fresh fruits and vegetables for at least three months.

Treatment for vitamin K deficiency typically involves oral, subcutaneous, or intravenous administration of vitamin K supplements to correct the deficiency.