- Osteoporosis, or loss of bone mass and density, affects many people, especially those over the age of 50, increasing the risk of breaks and fractures.
- A new randomized controlled study finds that eating 5-6 prunes a day can preserve bone mass and density, halting the development of osteoporosis.
- The same researchers, in a second study, found that loss of bone health is associated with inflammatory processes in the body, and prunes are known to be anti-inflammatory.
Osteoporosis is a condition in which a person’s bones lose density and mass, making the bones more likely to break. According to the National Osteoporosis Foundationabout 10 million Americans have the condition, and another 44 million lack bone density, putting them at risk for osteoporosis.
Half of women over the age of 50 are at increased risk of breaking a bone and one in four men. Loss of bone mass and density can occur at any age. However, osteoporosis is more common among older people.
Osteoporosis occurs more often in postmenopausal women. In 2017-2018, 19.6% of women over the age of 50 developed the condition, a higher percentage than the number of women who had heart attacks, strokes or developed breast cancer, combined.
The hip bones, spinal vertebrae, and wrist are the most common sites of osteoporotic bone fractures, although they can occur in any bone. For the elderly, hip fractures can be especially serious.
a new randomized controlled trial shows that eating 5-6 prunes a day can stop the progression of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women, compared to a control group that did not consume the fruit.
This is the second of a pair of studies by researchers at Penn State University in University Park, Pennsylvania. The first, an observational study not yet published, investigated an association between inflammatory markers and loss of bone mineral density, or BMD.
Principal investigator Dr. Mary Jane Souza saying Today’s medical news:
“Our findings indicate that higher levels of inflammatory markers were associated with lower trabecular bone scores in the lumbar spine among study participants; essentially, the more inflammation, the worse bone health.”
“Inflammation could be an important mediator for postmenopausal bone loss and a potential target for nutritional therapies.” Dr. Souza noted.
The research, funded by the California Prune Board, was presented at the North American Menopause Society annual meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, in October 2022.
Dr. Souza explained that researchers have been investigating the links between prunes and bone health for many years.
“Our latest research represents the largest trial, with a cohort of more than 200 postmenopausal women, to investigate the connection between prunes and favorable bone health,” he said.
Dr. Souza said MNT that with the current largest randomized trial, they wanted to build on existing research “to validate and replicate the findings of earlier, smaller trials that indicated that prunes may be a promising nonpharmacologic nutritional intervention for preserving bone and maintaining density and bone strength.
“Our study is the first to reveal that consuming just 5 or 6 prunes a day prevented loss of bone mineral density in the hip, the site of greatest concern for aging men and women, since hip fractures commonly lead to to hospitalization and decrease quality of life. and loss of independence.
— Dr. Mary Jane Souza
“Prune eaters were also protected from an increased risk of hip fracture compared to non-prune eaters, whose fracture risk was worsened,” he added.
The researchers also found “a similar trend in which bone strength is maintained in the tibia and volumetric cortical density is maintained, while the control group showed a worsening of these parameters.”
The researchers divided the participants into three groups. One, the control group, ate no prunes. Another group ate 5 to 6 prunes a day and another ate 10 to 12 prunes a day.
The benefit of prunes was most demonstrable at 5-6 a day, with no benefit from eating more.
“The main differences were that we had a much lower dropout rate in the 5-6 prunes a day group: 15% compared to a 41% dropout rate in the 10-12 prunes a day group.” said Dr. Souza.
“Furthermore, we saw that hip BMD was maintained in the 6 prunes a day group compared to the control group, a finding that was not seen in the 10 to 12 prunes a day group. This finding was observable within six months and … persisted through month 12.”
— Dr. Mary Jane Souza
“We also observe that the FRAX [Fracture Risk Assessment] total hip score did not increase in the combined group of women [containing both the 5-6 prunes a day group and the 10–12 prunes a day group] compared to the control group,” said Dr. Souza. This suggests that eating more prunes did not improve bone health.
“While it is not necessarily clear exactly what it is that prunes exerts this favorable effect on bone health, this whole fruit does contain several important vitamins and minerals for bones, including boron, potassium, copper, and vitamin K. Prunes they also contain polyphenols, bioactive compounds that appear to play a role in bone formation,” said Dr. Souza.
He pointed to the anti-inflammatory effects of prunes, saying that they “have specifically studied this effect and will report on these findings soon.”
“We look forward to continuing this type of research related to bone health, while expanding research on the influence of prunes on the gut-bone axis, and what the research may reveal about that connection,” he added.
Michelle RuthensteinEntirelyNourished.com’s cardiology dietitian, who was not involved in the study, suggested Today’s medical news additional ways to maintain healthy bones:
“Other dietary strategies that can help combat bone loss and strengthen bones include consuming adequate amounts of calcium, vitamin D, magnesium, potassium, and vitamin K from food.”
“I highly recommend getting calcium from foods like sardines, yogurt, and kale. Other foods rich in vitamin K, magnesium and potassium include edamame and green leafy vegetables such as Swiss chard and kale.”
—Michelle Routhenstein
Routhenstein added that for those looking to use supplements to keep their bones healthy, he advised “avoiding high-dose calcium supplements above 500 mg due to their ability to cause calcification in the arteries.”
