Can Dried Fruit Prevent Bone Loss?

Over the centuries, women have discovered that after menopause the risk of osteoporosis increases. The all too familiar stooped appearance is credited for this deterioration in skeletal health. There is good news, and it should not only apply to women.

The study

A short term study was performed, with the objective of examining whether the addition of dried plums to the diets of postmenopausal women could improve bone stability and development.

Fifty-eight postmenopausal women, not on hormone replacement therapy (HRT), were randomly assigned to consume either 100 g dried plums or 75 g dried apples daily for 3 months. Both dried fruit regimens provided similar amount of calories, fat, carbohydrate, and fiber. Serum and urinary biochemical markers of bone status were assessed before and after treatment. In comparison with corresponding baseline values, only dried plums significantly increased serum levels of insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) and bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (BSAP) activity. Higher levels of both serum IGF-I and BSAP are associated with greater rates of bone formation. Serum and urinary markers of bone resorption, however, were not affected by either dietary regimen. The results of this study suggest that dried plums may exert positive effects on bone in postmenopausal women. Longer duration studies are needed to confirm the beneficial effects of dried plum on bone mineral density (BMD) and the skeletal health of postmenopausal women.

Women are not alone in this age related problem. But they are the majority. In another study, age related bone loss was found in more women then men.

49% of older US women had osteopenia and 10% had osteoporosis at the femur neck. In men, 30% had femur neck osteopenia and 2% had femur neck osteoporosis. An estimated 5.3 million older men and women had osteoporosis at the femur neck, and 34.5 million more had osteopenia.

Certain foods have been proclaimed to be good for stabilizing bone loss, as well as promoting good general health. An article in a medical journal (Functional foods and physical activities in health promotion of aging people) is summarized below.

Foods contain many bioactive compounds that can improve humans’ health, helping to decrease the risk of cataract, macular degeneration, cardiovascular and neurological diseases, osteoporosis, and cancer. Regular practice of exercise and physical activity could also help to drive away aging-associated diseases (obesity, osteoporosis, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, dementia, and stroke). Exercise recommendations to promote both women’s and men’s health and disease conditions that hinder exercise practice are described. Health promotion practices should focus on both dietary intake of functional foods and regular practice of exercise within the framework of a healthy lifestyle.

Dried Plums Reversed Bone Loss and Altered Bone Metabolism in Postmenopausal subjects with Osteoporosis

Interest in dried plum has increased over the past decade due to its promise in restoring bone and preventing bone loss in animal models of osteoporosis. This study compared the effects of dried plum on bone to other dried fruits and further explored the potential mechanisms of action through which dried plum may exert its osteoprotective effects. Alterations in bone metabolism and antioxidant status compared to other dried fruits provided insight into dried plum’s unique effects on bone.   Read all about it in a very detailed summary of this exhaustive study.

Florida State University study finds that including prunes in your daily diet offers powerful protection against both osteoporosis and bone fracture.

Prunes are amazingly good at strengthening bones, said the study’s lead author, Bahram H. Arjmandi, PhD, RD, chairman of Florida State’s department of nutrition, food and exercise sciences in its College of Human Sciences. Having studied how various fruits, including figs, raisins and strawberries, affect bone health, Dr. Arjmandi said that prunes are uniquely helpful in preventing and/or reversing osteoporosis. That’s because they contain compounds that help suppress the natural process of bone breakdown more technically known as resorption—which is a big issue for older people since bone breakdown tends to exceed the rate of new bone growth as people age. “Yes, you can take medication to make your bones stronger,” Dr. Arjmandi said, “but I don’t think you can compete with nature in producing anything that is as effective in promoting bone health, while also being healthy in other ways, as prunes are.”

So, what is it about prunes that helps bones? First, they are unusually high in several types of phytonutrients including the antioxidants neochlorogenic acid and chlorogenic acid, which have been shown to prevent bone loss. Prunes contain larger amounts of boron than most other fruits, and boron helps preserve bone mineral density by modulating bone and calcium metabolism. Prunes also contain iron and potassium, important for blood and heart health.  Read the  whole study to get all the results.

Consuming 5 to 6 dried plums daily

ABSTRACT

Daily consumption of 50 g of dried plum (equivalent to 5–6 dried plums) for 6 months may be as effective as 100 g of dried plum in preventing bone loss in older, osteopenic postmenopausal women. To some extent, these results may be attributed to the inhibition of bone resorption with the concurrent maintenance of bone formation. Introduction The objective of our current study was to examine the possible dose-dependent effects of dried plum in preventing bone loss in older osteopenic postmenopausal women. Methods Forty-eight osteopenic women (65–79 years old) were randomly assigned into one of three treatment groups for 6 months: (1) 50 g of dried plum; (2) 100 g of dried plum; and (3) control. Total body, hip, and lumbar bone mineral density (BMD) were evaluated at baseline and 6 months using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry.

 Can Prunes Reverse Bone Loss?

Question to Eleanor in the Scientific American  March 15, 2017

“Can you comment on the benefits of prunes to stimulate bone growth? There are a lot of sites promoting prunes as a scientifically proven way to ward off osteoporosis. I’d love it if you would give these claims a critical look.”

Eleanor commented:

There has been quite a bit of research done on dried plums (aka prunes) and their effects on bone health. Some of the results have been quite impressive. One study, for example, found that subjects who had already experienced substantial bone loss were able to completely reverse these losses by eating prunes every day! Others show that eating prunes can help prevent the bone loss from occurring in the first place.

The only problem is that these studies were all done in mice and involved eating prunes as 25% of the entire diet.  I’ll just give you a moment to contemplate the potential impact of that.

Blog comment: The researcher in the Scientific American article above, somehow missed the human research that was quoted in the paragraphs before.