Could a handful of nutrient-rich dried plums each day help keep the doctor away by actually reversing bone loss in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis or osteoarthritis?

A unique clinical study under way in the Florida State University College of Human Sciences means to find out.

FSU Professor Bahram H. Arjmandi is the principal investigator and a nationally recognized expert on the effects of “functional foods” (dietary components that may provide a health benefit beyond basic nutrition) on chronic diseases.

His previous studies found that dried plums - better known as prunes - restored lost bone in animal models of osteoporosis, and improved biomarkers linked to bone formation in postmenopausal women.

 

Expanding the range of effective treatment options for osteoporosis is critical: 10 million Americans already have the silent but debilitating disease; another 34 million are at risk.

Postmenopausal women are particularly susceptible to fractures due to osteoporotic bone loss -- and up to 20 percent of that loss can occur within just five to seven years after menopause.

Why prunes? “While drug therapies are available for the treatment of osteoporosis, they can be prohibitively expensive and are not without side effects; hence long-term adherence to these therapies is low,” Arjmandi said. “Furthermore, many women prefer to modify their lifestyle and dietary practices in order to prevent fracture due to osteoporosis.”

Meanwhile, hopes are high for those plums. In a 2004 study he led while at Oklahoma State University, Arjmandi found that a diet supplemented with dried plums produced significant restoration of bone mass in female rats whose ovaries had been surgically removed.

“I’ve never seen results that were more consistent,” he said. “If the findings from FSU’s human study are similarly positive and reproducible, they could help researchers isolate the compounds responsible. From there, it may be possible to create a safe, low-cost alternative or adjunct to prescription medications for osteoporosis.”

While eating the fruit itself is the best way to benefit from potent, concentrated plant-based chemicals such as polyphenols, supplemental forms are useful when fruit isn’t consistently available or consumed in sufficient amounts, Arjmandi said.

And when it comes to plums and apples, only a few varieties provide optimal health benefits in dried form. 

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