California Prune Board Highlights Study Showing Benefits of Prunes for Bone Health; Andrea N. Giancoli and Mary Jane De Souza Comment
ROSEVILLE, CA - Touting the health benefits of a product is a key strategy to get consumers to start paying attention to said product, especially as immunity-boosting offerings garner shopper focus. The California Prune Board is highlighting the advantages provided by daily prune consumption, revealing key insights from a recent study. Researchers from Pennsylvania State University discovered that consuming prunes daily preserved bone mineral density (BMD) at the hip and protected against increased fracture risk in postmenopausal women.
“Just a handful of prunes can easily be added to anyone’s lifestyle,” noted California Prune Board’s Nutrition Advisor, Andrea N. Giancoli, MPH, RD. “Prunes pair with so many flavors and textures and work well for individualized nutrition plans. Mix them into salads, trail mixes, smoothies, savory dishes—you name it. The naturally sweet flavor of prunes makes them a versatile ingredient or convenient snack for anyone.”
The study findings were presented at the World Congress on Osteoporosis, Osteoarthritis, and Musculoskeletal Diseases, according to a press release, which explained that this research is the first to demonstrate a favorable effect of prune consumption on BMD at the hip and points to prunes as a food-based therapeutic option for protecting bone health.
“It is exciting that the data from our large randomized controlled trial in postmenopausal women showed that consuming five to six prunes a day demonstrated the benefit of protecting from bone loss at the hip,” commented Principal Investigator Mary Jane De Souza, PhD, FACSM, distinguished Professor, Pennsylvania State University. “Our data supports the use of prunes to protect the hip from bone loss post-menopause. Indeed, these data may be especially valuable for postmenopausal women who cannot take pharmacological therapy to combat bone loss and need an alternative strategy.”
To read more about the findings of the study, click here.
Boosting consumers' awareness about the health benefits of this produce item is a perfect way to collect more shopper dollars while building a larger fan base for the category. For more category insights and updates, leave a tab open for ANUK.
