Lumbrokinase vs nattokinase — both are enzyme supplements known for supporting fibrinolysis (the body's natural process of breaking down fibrin), and both get searched together because people researching one for heart health or circulation often come across the other. Here's how they actually differ, and why nattokinase is the easier, better-studied option to start with in the UK.
For dosage timing on the enzyme we stock, see our guide: Best Time to Take Nattokinase — Morning or Night?.
What is nattokinase?
Nattokinase is an enzyme derived from natto, a traditional Japanese fermented soybean food. It's one of the more widely researched fibrinolytic enzyme supplements — a 2024 systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials found nattokinase supplementation was associated with favourable changes in several cardiovascular risk markers (systematic review and meta-analysis, PubMed).
What is lumbrokinase?
Lumbrokinase is a different fibrinolytic enzyme, originally derived from earthworm extract and more commonly researched and used in East Asian clinical settings. A recent meta-analysis looking at its use in acute ischaemic stroke care found evidence for efficacy and an acceptable safety profile in that hospital-based context (meta-analysis, PubMed). That research is specific to a clinical, medically supervised setting — it isn't evidence for an over-the-counter supplement use case, which is an important distinction.
Key differences at a glance
Nattokinase has a longer track record as a consumer supplement, is derived from a plant-fermentation source (easier for a natural, vegetarian-friendly product), and has more research specifically in general cardiovascular risk-factor contexts rather than acute hospital care. Lumbrokinase's stronger evidence base sits in acute, clinically supervised stroke settings — a very different use case from a daily wellness supplement.
Which one should you choose?
For most people looking for a daily, natural fibrinolytic-support supplement, nattokinase is the more practical choice — it's better represented in general-population supplement research, more widely available in the UK, and doesn't carry the same sourcing and standardisation questions that come with earthworm-derived extracts. Lumbrokinase's evidence base is concentrated in clinical stroke-care settings under medical supervision, which isn't the same context as an everyday wellness routine.
Nattokinase is part of our wider heart-health range:
The bottom line
Lumbrokinase and nattokinase are both fibrinolytic enzymes, but they come from different sources, are used in different contexts, and have different depths of consumer-supplement evidence. For everyday use, nattokinase is the better-researched and more accessible option — lumbrokinase's strongest evidence sits in specialist clinical care, not general supplementation.
