• osteoporosis
• menopause
• Prunus domestica L.
• prugne secche
• polifenoli
• osteoporosi
• menopausa
• polyphenols
• dried plums/prunes
• Prunus domestica L.

The aim of the study was to investigate the possible beneficial effects of prunes’ consumption on bone health.
Prunes are dried plums, fruits of Prunus domestica L., which originated from the Caucasus region in Western Asia. Today, most dried plums are the fruit of the cultivar P. domestica cv. d’Agen, a native of southwest France. In 1856, this cultivar was introduced in California and become the leading commercial dried fruit known all over the world.
Prunes are recognized as an healthy food. Many studies highlighted their beneficial properties such as laxative, cardioprotective, antimicrobial and neurological effects. To date, the most remarkable research has been in the area of bone health in which the mix of vitamin K, potassium, boron and/or polyphenols could be involved.
In addition to the preclinical studies, it was demonstrated that the consumption of 100 g/day dried plums by postmenopausal women for three months, significantly increased the serum markers of bone formation, namely total ALP, bone-specific ALP (BALP), and IGF-I by 12, 6, and 17% respectively.
Subsequently, it was showed that the consumption of 100 g/day dried plums by postmenopausal women for one year significantly improved the BMD of the lumbar spine and ulna compared with the dried apple control.
Moreover, it was demonstrated that the daily consumption of 50 g of prunes may be as effective as 100 g in preventing the loss of total body BMD in older osteopenic postmenopausal women.