Vitamin K supplementation in infants

Since 1990, all full-term infants in the Netherlands receive 1 milligram of vitamin K orally after birth in order to prevent early and classic vitamin K deficiency bleedings. In addition, parents and carers are advised to give breastfed infants 25 microrams of vitamin K daily from day 8 until they are three months old to prevent late vitamin K deficiency bleedings. Under the current prohylaxis regime, approximately five infants develop late vitamin K deficiency bleedings. To improve this, the Health Council of the Netherlands advises the Dutch government to increase the current vitamin K prophylaxis from 25 micrograms per day to 150 micrograms per day.