Copper Toxicity - Lotus Life

June 22, 2018 Melissa Soria

Aloha cherished Friends & Guests,

Have you heard of copper toxicity? I know I hadn’t until I witnessed a relative have a severe reaction. I was blown away at how quickly it came on and how sick she became. It made me wonder what foods are high in copper and why it causes this type of reaction. I began to wonder if I was also at risk with high copper foods. It is definitely worth it to figure out how to prevent illnesses and live a healthier lifestyle.

Now what foods are high in copper? More foods than you would believe have copper! My relative, as I mentioned above, became sick after eating Indian food. What was it about Indian food that could have been high in copper? Turns out chickpeas have very high copper content! I have friends who are vegans and chickpeas are used extensively daily food intake, such as humus. Other foods that contain high copper content include almonds, cashews, kale, and avocado. All of these I eat often!

After learning of these foods high in copper, I reflected on my previous dinner choice of vegetable korma (made with chickpeas). Fortunately, I didn’t have any reaction to the foods listed. What really surprised me is how closely fibromyalgia is related to copper levels. Someone with fibromyalgia who eats food high in copper will experience a severe reaction as fibromyalgia flares up with elevated levels of copper. Reactions can feel similar to symptoms of the flu such as fatigue, muscle aches, and mental fogginess. It is horrible how quickly it happens and how sick you will feel when you have a severe reaction to copper toxicity. This is a real issue that a lot of people are not aware of.

Knowing what foods and symptoms are associated with high levels of copper, finding solutions are just as important. When high copper content is present, metallothionein is not functioning as it should. In order to improve metallothionein function, Copper Balance will help along with water and rest.

It is difficult to feel awful and not know the reasons behind it. For me, half the battle is knowing what is wrong and finding the best solution. Perhaps reading this will give you power once again and help you identify what could be wrong if you don’t feel well after eating foods high in copper. As always, consult your primary care physician to discuss your symptoms and ways to prevent any flare ups.

Keep Smiling,

Melissa Soria

Comment from Dr Purser:

Thank you Melissa, great job. Everyone should also know that copper has been found at the base of trigger points. Interesting, right? We don’t think fibromyalgia is so much a copper toxicity as it is a copper metallothionein dysfunction caused by some deficiency and tied to genetics somehow (generally runs runs in families). We used a mild shotgun approach to address those possible deficiencies in the metallothionein (no way to really test for these type of microscopic deficiencies so we just ‘shotgun’ it). Eventually all the symptoms go away, and the fibromyalgia patient improves. This is not a cure, just an abatement as we think it is genetic at its base.

Patients can take anywhere 3-10 Copper Balance capsules when they have a flare up (from no symptoms to a 9 or 10 pain wise when they eat the wrong foods). These patients also increase their VARS Glutathione intake to help with metallothionein dysfunction and detox (reduced glutathione makes up a third of the metallothionein by molecular weight). This is a constant battle these patient take on until they learn what foods they should avoid.

-- Dan Purser MD