I know some people from Copperas Cove Texas. They have a son. He was having some behavior problems. I spent some time with him. We threw rocks in the creek. I noticed his fingernails had a whole bunch of white spots on them.

When I was managing a vitamin store, I learned that white spots on the fingernails are an indication of zinc deficiency, and that copper and zinc compete for absorption. You must take zinc to bring down copper levels, and copper to bring down zinc levels.

They live in Copperas Cove. I looked up the history of the area. The town got it's name because the natural springs in the area are high in copper. Copper toxicity is often due to a deficiency of dietary zinc, as this article explains-


http://www.diagnose-me.com/cond/C514620.html



An acquaintence of mine is a nutritionist. He studied deliquent teenage boys, who'd committed serious crimes, like murder. He said over 90% of them had extremely high copper levels and extremly low zinc levels. He gave them zinc and it brought down their copper levels. When the ratio of copper to zinc came into balance, their behavior improved.

I told my friends their son had a mineral deficiency and they needed to give him some zinc. They gave him zinc and the white spots on his fingernails went away. He seems mellower and happier now. He isn't demanding as much attention in a negative manner as he used to.

Merck manual says:

"Copper accumulation should be prevented by a low copper diet (eg, avoiding beef liver, cashews, black-eyed peas, vegetable juice, shellfish, mushrooms, and cocoa) and by either low-dose chelation therapy or oral zinc."



http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec01/ch005/ch005c.html