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Copper & Health

Danielle Q Currey, ND, CST-T

What is Copper & What Does it Do?

Copper is another trace metal that is essential to life.  This is the same copper you would see in home decor, jewelry, and wiring.  In the body, it plays roles in energy production; iron metabolism; bone, tooth, and connective tissue formation; nervous system function; and oxidative stress. (1)

Copper Deficiency: 

Copper deficiency is relatively uncommon and is mostly due to malabsorption, malnutrition, or genetic abnormalities.  Premature infants and infants who have experienced prolonged diarrhea are also susceptible to copper deficiency. (1)  High-dose supplementation of zinc at levels of 50 mg or more daily can also cause copper deficiency, so if you take several supplements, be sure to check your zinc intake! (3)

Symptoms of deficiency include: (1), (2)

  • Anemia

  • Lowered innate immune function

  • Low neutrophil count

  • Osteoporosis - more common in infants and young children 

  • Loss of pigmentation

  • Neurological symptoms

  • Impaired growth    

  • Central nervous system demyelination 

  • Polyneuropathy

  • Myelopathy

  • Inflammation of the optic nerve

  • Changes in the bone marrow

Prevention of Disease:

Measuring copper levels is tricky, and this makes it difficult to correlate low or high copper levels with disease conditions outside or overt deficiency or toxicity.  That being said, there is some evidence that adequate copper levels may play a role in reducing the development of: 

  • Cardiovascular disease

  • Lowered immune function

  • Osteoporosis

  • Alzheimer’s disease

  • Parkinson’s disease

Disease Treatment:

Outside of the treatment of copper deficiency, there isn’t strong evidence in support of the use of supplemental copper.

Toxicity:

Copper toxicity has been documented with genetic disorders of copper metabolism such as Wilson’s disease, as well as in the general population.  Signs of copper toxicity include: (4)

  • Gastrointestinal symptoms (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain)

  • Blue/green stool or vomit

  • Extreme thirst

  • Headache

  • Rapid heart rate

  • Altered mental function

  • Breakdown of muscle tissue

  • Heart failure

  • Kidney failure

  • Coma

  • Death 

Due to the real potential harm of copper toxicity, an Upper Limit (UL) of 10,000 mcg has been established for adults.  Those with known disorders of copper metabolism should limit their copper intake even further than this. 

Outside of excessive supplementation, copper poisoning often results from accidental ingestion of contaminated water or food. 

Where to Find Copper: 

Foods particularly rich in copper include: (1)

  • Organ meats

  • Shellfish

  • Nuts

  • Seeds

  • Wheat bran

  • Whole grains

Applications:

Our takeaways this week are: 

  1. Copper is an important nutrient for our blood, brains, bones, and immune systems.

  2. Both low and high copper levels have significant, life-changing or life-ending, problems associated with them.

  3. Iron deficiency anemia that isn’t responding to iron supplementation may be due to a copper deficiency.

  4. High doses of zinc can cause copper deficiency.

Daily Intake:

The RDA for copper is 900 mcg daily to avoid copper deficiency symptoms.  

Medication and Nutrient Interactions:

High dose zinc supplementation of 50 mcg or more can cause copper deficiency.  Penicillamine can bind to and increase the elimination of copper lowering levels. (1)

Next week: 

Next week I will be taking a one week break. January will bring us 2022, and we will explore iodine and its role in our health.

To our health!

References: 

  1. Higdon, J, “Copper” Linus Pauling Institute, 2000; last update: 2014; accessed November 29, 2021; https://lpi.oregonstate.edu/mic/minerals/copper

  2. Wazir SM, Ghobrial I. Copper deficiency, a new triad: anemia, leucopenia, and myeloneuropathy. J Community Hosp Intern Med Perspect. 2017;7(4):265-268. Published 2017 Sep 19. doi:10.1080/20009666.2017.1351289

  3. Rowin J, Lewis SLCopper deficiency myeloneuropathy and pancytopenia secondary to overuse of zinc supplementationJournal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry 2005;76:750-751.

  4. Royer A, Sharman T. Copper Toxicity. [Updated 2021 Jun 29]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2021 Jan-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK557456/