Helps to produce and repair connective tissue and form red blood cells. A factor in the maintenance of good health.
The Canadian penny may be obsolete, but copper continues to be a very valuable mineral. In fact, it’s essential to human health. To the detriment of many individuals the importance of copper has been overlooked and overshadowed by its antagonist, zinc. When we supplement large doses of zinc (i.e. 50 mg or higher) in the interest of supporting a health condition, it competes with dietary copper for uptake into the bloodstream and can result in copper deficiency. This can affect oxygen utilization, immune function, repair and maintenance of connective tissue, and more.
Copper and Collagen
Copper is essential for the body to manufacture collagen, the structural protein that comprises most of our tissues---including skin, joint cartilage, muscles, bones and blood vessels. While collagen supplements are a popular trend, there’s no guarantee that supplementary collagen will be used for one specific purpose or area of the body. That’s because instead of being absorbed intact, it’s broken down into individual amino acids by the digestive system. Taking copper to support the body’s structural proteins makes more sense than taking collagen because copper does not actually undergo changes during digestion. Combined with the ever- important vitamin, ascorbic acid (vitamin C), copper can be utilized to manufacture our own collagen. This is significant to vegetarians as a way of supplying the building blocks for collagen without the use of animal products, but also to meat-eaters who are looking to support their joints, muscles, and skin.
Copper and the Blood
No mineral can do the job of another. Iron is the key nutrient responsible for good oxygen- carrying capacity. However, without adequate copper, iron supplementation alone may not restore ferritin and hemoglobin levels. This is because of ceruloplasmin, a protein that the two minerals seek to bind with. Taking lots of iron while being low in copper can mean continued fatigue, light-headedness and poor stamina for the anemic individual, leaving that person wondering if their iron supplement is any good.
In addition, zinc-induced copper deficiency can lead to neutropenia---a condition of having a low white blood cell count, specifically of neutrophils. The complication of this scenario includes decreased resistance to bacterial infections---and reduces the ability to fight them off once they’ve started.
PLV Copper Glycinate is formulated with nature’s smallest essential amino acid, glycine, for optimal absorption from the gut into the bloodstream. At just one milligram per capsule, it provides flexibility for use as replenishment of copper levels with two capsules daily and for maintenance at just one capsule daily.
Ultimately, hair mineral analysis can be an important tool to monitoring mineral levels in the individual. However, copper in the 1mg dosage can also safely be used alongside zinc supplementation in the proper ratio in individuals whose trace minerals need restocking, without the concern of overshooting the goal of topping up the levels of either one.
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