10 Foods High in Copper
Copper is an essential mineral required by the body for bone & connective tissue production, and for coding specific enzymes that range in function from eliminating free radicals to producing melanin. A deficiency in copper can lead to osteoporosis, joint pain, lowered immunity, and since copper is essential for the absorption of iron, anemia. Conversely, over-consumption of copper will lead to cramps, diarrhea, and vomiting in the short term, and can lead to depression, schizophrenia, hypertension, senility, and insomnia in the long term. The stomach needs to be acidic in order to absorb copper and thus antacids interfere with the absorption of copper, as do milk and egg proteins. The current RDA for copper is 2mg. Below is a list of high copper foods.
Pumpkin Seeds
Pumpkin seeds contain 3.1 mg of copper per cup or 156% of the RDA.
Oysters
Six medium oysters contain 2.4 mg per cup or 120% of the RDA.
Sunflower seeds
Sunflower seeds contains 2.3 mg per cup or 115% of the RDA
Sesame Seeds
Sesame seeds contain 1.9 mg per cup or 95% of the RDA.
Walnuts
Walnuts contains 1.9 mg per cup or 93% of the RDA.
Soybeans
soybeans contains .7 mg per cup or 35% of the RDA.
Lentils
Lentilscontains .5 mg per cup or 25% of the RDA.
Crimini Mushrooms
Crimini mushrooms contains .4 mg per cup or 20% of the RDA.
Quinoa
Quinoa contains .4 mg per cup or 18% of the RDA.
Sweet Potatoes
Sweet potatoes contains .3 mg per cup or 16% of the RDA.
