Copper in diet linked to degenerative disease

High levels of copper in elderly peoples’ diets could be one of the main environmental triggers causing the onset of Alzheimer’s disease.
This is according to scientists from the University of Rochester (US) Medical Center’s Department of Neurosurgery, which is a member of the Center for Translational Neuromedicine, who found the mineral contributed to the impairment of various brain functions.
Copper is omnipresent in the food supply chain, according to Rashid Deane, research professor and lead author, with drinking water carried by copper pipes and many fruits and vegetables exposed to the material in transit.
While this has never been proven to be problematic before, Professor Deane has found that copper can accumulate in the brain and cause the blood brain barrier, which controls what enters and exits the brain, to break down.
This lets toxic proteins, including amyloid beta, to enter the organ and cause it to stop functioning properly.
Professor Deane said: “These are very low levels of copper, equivalent to what people would consume in a normal diet.”