Author
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Klevay, Leslie |
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Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only Publication Acceptance Date: 9/17/1999 Publication Date: N/A Citation: Klevay, L.M. 1999. Does low dietary copper explain the epidemiologic link between ischemic heart disease and osteoporosis? [abstract]. Proceedings of the 2nd International Meeting in Copper Homeostasis and Its Disorders. p.26. Interpretive Summary: Technical Abstract: The copper deficiency theory of the etiology and pathogenesis of ischemic heart disease has been in development for more than two decades. In brief, the Western diet frequently is low in copper. Copper deficiency is the only nutritional insult that elevates cholesterol, blood pressure and uric acid, has adverse effects on electrocardiograms, impairs glucose tolerance, to which males respond differently than females, and which promotes thrombosis. More than 75 anatomical, chemical and physiological similarities between animals deficient in copper and people with ischemic heart disease have been identified. Copper deficiency produces abnormal connective tissues which are necessary for healthy blood vessels and bones. Osteoporosis generally is evaluated by roentgenography; it has been found in many children deficient in copper. Greater osteoporosis was associated with higher degrees of aortic calcification in men and women in Israel, with higher carotid atherosclerosis in women in Japan, and with increased risk of stroke and cardiovascular disease in women in the U.S. Decreased levels of copper have been found in people with osteophytic lipping of the thoracic spine, ischemic necrosis of the femoral head, fractures of femoral neck and decreased lumbar bone density in several studies. Trace element supplements including copper and copper alone have had a beneficial effect on bone density of women. Bone and joint disease have been found in deficient dogs, mice, pigs and rats, mostly before the Medline era. Recently, bones from deficient rodents have proved fragile to quantitative fracture. Low dietary copper may induce both ischemic heart disease and osteoporosis. |
