Sometimes it takes only a very tiny amount of something to get the job done. Copper, a trace mineral present in an adult’s body between 1.4 to 2.1 milligrams per kilogram of body weight, is just that something when it comes to breaking down fat cells. A healthy person weighing approximately 132 pounds would only have about a tenth of one gram of copper present in their body. But that tiny amount appears to do a sizeable job for us by burning fat.

Findings from new research

A new 2016 study conducted at the University of California, Berkeley and to be published in Nature Chemical Biology in July has found copper to be a key player in metabolizing fat. This is the first time research has been able to confirm copper’s role in fat metabolism.

Lead scientist, Chris Chang, a faculty scientist at Berkeley Lab’s Chemical Sciences Division, stated, “We find that copper is essential for breaking down fat cells so that they can be used for energy. The more copper there is, the more the fat is broken down.”

The prevailing thought is that more studies will need to be done to see whether a copper deficiency may be a link for obesity and diseases related to being obese. The Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine, has found only 25 percent of the U.S. population takes in sufficient copper each day. The average daily requirement for copper is estimated to be 900 micrograms for adults 19 and older each day.

This new research made the connection between copper and fat metabolism by studying mice with a genetic mutation causing the accumulation of copper in the liver. This condition is called Wilson’s disease, a very rare inherited disorder that causes too much copper to accumulate in the organs. There are fewer than 20,000 cases of Wilson’s disease in the United States.

Laboratory research on the mice revealed that copper is an endogenous regulator of lipolysis, the breakdown of fat, which is an essential process in maintaining body weight and energy stores. In other words, without sufficient copper present, this looks to be one reason for whether our fat stores are getting broken down enough helping to keep our body weight at a healthy level.

Numerous functions of copper

Copper is not a mineral spoken of often but it has a host of important roles in the human body. It works with iron to help the body form hemoglobin and is also required for iron absorption – without enough copper, iron will not get absorbed. Many enzymes depend on copper for its oxygen-handling ability. Copper is also needed to keep our blood vessels, nerves, immune system, and bones healthy.

Deficiencies of copper are rare but can be present in severely malnourished infants fed a copper-poor milk formula. Excess zinc can interfere with copper absorption and can cause a deficiency but this is only when taking a supplement of zinc of more than 30 milligrams per day. Copper toxicity from food is unlikely.

The best food sources of copper are:

· Seafood such as oysters, squid, lobster, mussels, clams, and crab

· Organ meats such as beef liver, kidneys, and heart

· Nuts and nut butters such as cashews, filberts, macadamia nuts, pecans, almonds, and pistachios

· Legumes such as soybeans, lentils, navy beans, and peanuts

· Chocolate, such as unsweetened or semisweet baker’s chocolate and cocoa

· Enriched cereals such as bran flakes, shredded wheat, and raisin bran

· Fruits and vegetables such as dried fruit, mushrooms, tomatoes, potatoes, sweet potatoes, bananas, grapes, and avocado

· Blackstrap molasses

· Black pepper

· Water may also supply copper especially where copper plumbing pipes are used.