This Dried Fruit Can Help Keep Your Bones Healthy

A new wrinkle in bone health could be as near as the dried fruit aisle. Eating dried plums (also known as prunes) may help preserve your bone density, according to researchers at Florida State University and Oklahoma State University.

During a one-year experiment, 55 postmenopausal women ate 100 grams of dried plums (about 10) a day; 45 similar-age women in a control group ate 100 grams of dried apples (about 4 ounces) daily. In addition, all the women took calcium and vitamin D.

After one year, the dried plum eaters had higher bone density in their spines and forearms, according to the research findings published recently in the British Journal of Nutrition. Dried plums contain substances that suppress the rate of bone breakdown, which tends to exceed new bone formation after menopause, say the researchers.