Prunes have many advantages over other treatments for normal bone loss and osteoporosis, including low cost and high nutrient density.
New research from the UC San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center shows that eating high doses of dried plums (prunes) increases bone volume in adult and elderly male mice. Prunes have many advantages over other treatments for normal bone loss and osteoporosis, including low cost and high nutrient density. They could also prove useful in preventing bone loss in younger animals.
During normal aging, mice lose approximately 60% of bone volume between 6 weeks and 24 months of age. Bone loss can also occur from disease states such as osteoporosis, and can be caused by hormone deficiencies and particular medications. Previous research has shown dried plums to be effective at limiting bone loss in a mouse model of estrogen deficiency. This is the first study to show that dried plum can actually restore bone that has been lost due to normal aging in males.
In the study, mice were started on the experimental diet at either 6 (adult) or 18 (elderly) months of age. All diets had the same number of calories and nitrogen ratio, but were supplemented with either 0, 15%, or 25% dried plums. Bone volume and density were measured directly, as were various markers of bone resorption and bone formation in blood samples.