Nutrition After Stroke: Why “Healthy” Isn’t Always Right for Your Brain
If it’s sold as healthy, it must be safe to add to your recovery. Most of us carry that belief without examining it. A new superfood, a trending supplement, a copper bottle that promises better water. The label says healthy, so more good things should mean a better brain.
Then you sit down with a psychiatrist and hear that the copper water bottle is, in his words, “a health risk.”
I went into this conversation expecting a straightforward chat about nutrition after stroke. I never expected it to go where it did.
My guest was Dr. Robert Hedaya, Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Georgetown University School of Medicine and founder of The Whole Psychiatry & Brain Recovery Center in New Jersey. This was his fourth and final conversation on the show, after earlier episodes on photobiomodulation, hormones and thyroid, and what blocks brain recovery. Here are the four things he wants you to know.
1. Feed it: your brain needs raw materials
Dr. Hedaya calls nutrition a bedrock of recovery. Neurons need essential fatty acids, protein, and minerals such as magnesium, zinc, copper, and selenium. B12 is needed to make myelin, the sheath that lets neurons fire at the right speed. His rules are simple:
- If it doesn’t grow that way, don’t eat it. Whole foods, not factory products.
- Balance your plate. About a third lean protein, a third above-ground vegetables, and a third healthy fats. He recommends The Zone by Barry Sears.
He is blunt about blood sugar: for anyone recovering from a brain disorder, high blood sugar is your enemy.
2. Test it first: find your baseline
Nutrients aren’t “more is better.” Dr. Hedaya tests B12, free copper, ceruloplasmin (the protein that binds copper), and zinc. B12 absorption can drop after 50 or with acid-blocking medication, so he looks at several markers together. In his patient population, he says, at least half are low in zinc, which neurons need to communicate.
“If you’re trying to recover from any brain disorder, high blood sugar is your enemy.”
3. Question the “healthy” fads
Copper is essential, but too much can harm. Dr. Hedaya says free copper can drive irritability and push zinc down, which is why he’s wary of copper water bottles.
Unlined copper does release copper into what it holds. A lab test of water stored in a copper vessel measured about 1 mg/L after 24 hours in plain water, which the authors judged within WHO and US EPA limits. But the contents matter. Another study found more copper in stored water containing amino acids and organic compounds, and US food-safety rules keep acidic food and drink away from copper. That’s why copper pots are lined, as I said in the interview. Do the maths: two litres a day at that level is around 2 mg of copper from water alone, before you eat anything.
Whether that matters depends on your baseline. With normal copper and good zinc, probably not much. With high copper or low zinc, it’s an extra source, and that’s what he tests for. I found no study of copper bottles in stroke survivors, so treat his “health risk” as a clinical judgment.
His other examples:
- Avocado. One analysis of eight varieties found copper was the main microelement measured.
- Dark chocolate. ConsumerLab testing found 43% of 72 products exceeded California’s lead limit and 35% its cadmium limit, though median levels were below the limits. Brand and serving size matter.
- Birth control pills. A German survey found higher serum copper in women on the pill. His view that copper IUDs do the same is a clinical observation.
4. Wake it up: what HYLANE is, and what it isn’t
His clinic uses HYLANE: hyperbaric oxygen, laser, and neural exercises such as neurofeedback. They’re passive treatments, and he follows Professor Shai Efrati’s protocol, covered in this episode. His limits are clear:
- Dead cells stay dead. Dormant cells can be woken, and progress can speed up, but the work remains.
- Hyperbaric oxygen isn’t for everyone. Infections like babesia or ear-clearing problems can rule it out, and seizures are a small risk. It needs clinician assessment.
- Cost is real. He doesn’t take insurance and sees new patients in person, though he’ll guide an open-minded local clinician. Yes, it’s expensive, and so is not being able to work for thirty years.
The belief to replace it with
“Healthy” isn’t a property of a food or supplement. It’s a relationship between that thing and your baseline. Remember to test before you add anything.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best nutrition after stroke? Dr. Hedaya starts with whole foods and a balanced plate, then tests for deficiencies.
Is a copper water bottle safe after a stroke? Unlined copper releases copper into water, more so with acidic or organic-rich drinks. He calls it a health risk, especially with high copper or low zinc. Ask your doctor to test copper and zinc first.
Can any treatment revive dead brain cells? No. He says HYLANE may wake dormant cells and speed progress.
My book, The Unexpected Way That A Stroke Became The Best Thing That Happened, is a path to post-traumatic growth after stroke. You can support the show financially on Patreon, and find Dr. Hedaya at wholepsychiatry.com.
Research (via PubMed): DOIs 10.1016/j.jaim.2018.02.134, 10.1007/s10482-010-9435-3, 10.1007/s11356-020-09970-z, 10.1038/s41598-023-50119-y, 10.3389/fnut.2024.1366231, 10.1038/sj.ejcn.1600631, 10.3143/geriatrics.37.304. Food Code summary: Snopes.
This blog is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please consult your doctor before making any changes to your health or recovery plan.
Nutrition, Copper, and Waking the Brain Interview with Dr. Robert Hedaya
Copper water, avocado, dark chocolate: Dr. Hedaya explains why “healthy” depends on your baseline, and what to test before you add anything.
00:00 Nutrition After Stroke
03:50 Two rules for what to eat
07:41 Is a copper water bottle healthy?
14:22 How should you build your plate?
16:13 Are avocado and chocolate safe?
20:40 Is there a passive brain therapy?
30:36 Can therapy revive dead brain cells?
35:25 What if you can’t afford it?
