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Lifestyle and home remedies
By Mayo Clinic staffDoctors sometimes recommend limiting the amount of copper you consume in your diet during the first year of your treatment for Wilson's disease. As your signs and symptoms recede and the copper levels in your body drop, you may be able to include copper-containing foods in your diet.
Copper-containing foods
Foods that contain high levels of copper include:
- Copper-containing vitamin and mineral supplements
- Liver
- Shellfish
- Mushrooms
- Nuts
- Chocolate
- Dried fruit
- Dried peas, beans and lentils
- Avocados
- Bran products
Copper in tap water
Have your tap water's copper levels tested if you have copper pipes in your home or if your water comes from a well. Most municipal water systems don't contain high levels of copper.
If you have copper pipes, run the tap for several seconds before collecting water for drinking or cooking. Water that sits in the copper pipes can pick up copper particles. Running the water flushes that contaminated water out of the pipes.
Copper pots and pans
Don't use copper pots, pans or storage containers for your food or drinks.
- Cox DW, et al. Wilson disease. In: Feldman M, et al. Sleisenger & Fordtran's Gastrointestinal and Liver Disease: Pathophysiology, Diagnosis, Management. 8th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2006. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/153549812-5/0/1389/0.html. Accessed Aug. 11, 2009.
- Roberts EA, et al. Diagnosis and treatment of Wilson disease: An update. Hepatology. 2008;47:2089.
- Wilson disease. National Institute for Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/wilson. Accessed Aug. 11, 2009.
- ATP7B. Genetics Home Reference. http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/gene=atp7b. Accessed Aug. 11, 2009.
- Copper, Cu (mg) content of selected foods. USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 21. http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/Data/SR21/nutrlist/sr21w312.pdf. Accessed Aug. 18, 2009.
- Picco MF (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Fla. Sept. 14, 2009.
