A prune—or six—a day may keep inflammation at bay

A research in postmenopausal individuals suggests consuming nutrient-rich prunes day-after-day could also be useful to bone well being, decreasing inflammatory components that contribute to osteoporosis. The analysis might be introduced this week in Philadelphia on the American Physiological Society’s (APS) annual assembly at Experimental Biology 2022.

An estimated 13.6 million individuals within the U.S. over the age of fifty will develop osteoporosis—a lack of bone power brought on by diminished mineral density of the bones—by the yr 2030. Osteoporosis will increase the chance of fracture, particularly in older adults. Individuals who expertise menopause have decrease ranges of estrogen, which set off a rise in irritation within the physique, which may additionally contribute to bone loss.

Earlier analysis has proven that polyphenol extracts—plant compounds that act as antioxidants and cut back irritation—in prunes promote decrease ranges of oxidative stress and irritation in a sort of bone cell referred to as osteoclasts. In a brand new research, researchers from the Integrative and Biomedical Physiology Program and the Departments of Dietary Sciences and Kinesiology at The Pennsylvania State College explored the results of prunes on bone well being after menopause.

Postmenopausal ladies with a bone mineral density rating that was outlined as low—a marker of osteoporosis—have been divided into three teams:

• One group ate 50 grams (g) of prunes (about six prunes) each day for 12 months.
• A second group ate 100 g of prunes (about 12 prunes) each day for 12 months.
• A management group ate no prunes.

The analysis staff checked out blood samples taken from all volunteers earlier than and after the trial and located vital reductions in inflammatory markers in each of the prune-eating teams in comparison with the management group.

“Our findings counsel that consumption of six to 12 prunes per day could cut back pro-inflammatory mediators that will contribute to bone loss in postmenopausal ladies. Thus, prunes is perhaps a promising dietary intervention to stop the rise in inflammatory mediators typically noticed as a part of the getting old course of,” stated Janhavi Damani, MS, first writer of the research.

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Experimental Biology