Copper and Cardiovascular Disease -- Copper: The Maligned Mineral, by A.S. Gissen - This article first appeared in the April-July/August, 1994 issues of VRP's Newsletter and the full paper can be found at http://www.unveilingthem.com/CopperTheMalignedMineral.htm

"Copper and Cardiovascular Disease
Although the relationship between nutrition and cardiovascular disease is generally accepted by most people, rarely will you hear copper mentioned as a contributing factor in this relationship. Based on the scientific evidence, this is surprising. Almost twenty years ago, it was postulated that there is a direct relationship between the level of copper in the human diet and the incidence of cardiovascular disease.22 Copper has been known to be associated with lipid metabolism since 1973,23 and research in numerous animal models, including humans, has shown that copper deficiency can significantly increase the plasma cholesterol concentration.24 Additionally, this increase in cholesterol results in an increase in LDL-cholesterol and a decrease in HDL -cholesterol, resulting in an increase in cardiovascular disease risk.25
It is well documented that animals with copper deficiency often have abnormal electrocardiograms, and die suddenly.26 In one study that looked at this relationship, it was found that copper deficiency reduced the life -span of rats by almost 75%. People with ischaemic heart disease usually die suddenly, often within one hour of the onset of symptoms. The hearts of people who die of ischaemic heart disease are hypertrophied and fibrotic, with edema, loss of cellular outline, and heart rupture often being found.27 Interestingly, all of these pathological changes are found in animals deficient in copper. In one human study that compared heart copper levels in heart attack victims and controls that died of other causes, it was found that the hearts of people that died of myocardial infarction were low in copper.28 Atherosclerotic arteries in humans have degenerative changes similar to those found in the arteries of copper deficient animals.29 It has also been demonstrated that copper deficiency significantly increases the susceptibility of lipoproteins and cardiovascular tissues to lipid peroxidation, thus increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease.30
While the role of adequate copper levels in maintaining cardiovascular health is well established, it is not entirely surprising that copper's importance has been overlooked. One of the laboratory findings often found in cardiovascular disease is increased serum levels of copper. While this may sound confusing, recent research has helped to explain this paradox. It has been suggested, for instance, that an elevated serum copper level is an independent risk factor for heart disease.29 Many researchers have considered this elevation of serum copper to play a role in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease, although other researchers have strongly disagreed with this hypothesis. A recent animal study, however, seems to have explained this relationship between copper levels and cardiovascular disease. This study examined the effects of diet-induced atherosclerosis on the copper levels and status of numerous tissues.30 It was found that serum copper levels increase significantly, while aorta and liver copper levels decrease significantly, in rats with experimental atherosclerosis. Instead of assuming that these elevated copper levels contribute to the formation of atherosclerosis, these researchers examined the effects of increasing the dietary copper levels in these animals. Administration of additional copper resulted in a further increase in serum copper, a significant decrease in serum cholesterol, and an increase and normalization in aorta and liver copper levels. However, instead of increasing the incidence of atherosclerosis, additional copper significantly decreased the incidence of atherosclerosis in the aorta and coronary arteries. Further, it has been shown that excess dietary cholesterol causes cardiovascular disease by lowering the absorption of copper, an effect that is preventable by increasing the copper level in the diet.31
Taken as a whole, the role of copper in maintaining cardiovascular health is well established. Copper is essential both for its role in antioxidant enzymes, like Cu-Zn Superoxide Dismutase and Ceruloplasmin, as well as its role in Lysyl Oxidase, essential for the strength and integrity of the heart and blood vessels. With such a central role in cardiovascular health, it is disappointing that copper has been generally overlooked in the debate over improving our cardiovascular health. Copper deficiency has produced many of the same abnormalities present in cardiovascular disease. It seems almost certain that copper plays a large role in the development of this killer disease, not because of its excess in the diet, but rather its deficiency...."