The No. 1 Food to Protect Bone Health in Older Women—And It’s not Dairy

As far as aging-related health issues go, osteoporosis is unfortunately one of the most common ailments. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), over 10 million Americans were living with the condition in 2010, 80 percent of whom are women. That’s why so many seniors focus on getting important nutrients like vitamin D and calcium through their diets. While most people default to dairy items to keep their bones healthy, a new study says a surprising food could be one of the best ways to protect bone health in older women.

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A new study examined prunes’ effect on bone density.

Osteoporosis poses a serious health risk for seniors. It typically develops later in life when hormonal changes lead to a decrease in bone density. This can make any slight fall, bump, or even cough a potential situation that leads to broken bones, per the CDC.

Because of the demographic breakdown of those who develop the condition, a team of researchers specifically looked at postmenopausal women and their bone health later in life. Their process was outlined in a recent study posted in the June 2025 issue of the journal Osteoporosis International, which focused on prune consumption.

As noted in an article published in the journal Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, prunes (or dried plums) are very high in dietary fiber, potassium, and boron, “which is postulated to play a role in the prevention of osteoporosis.”

To collect their data, researchers gathered 235 post menopausal women and conducted a 12-month randomized controlled trial. They were then split into three groups, including one control that ate no prunes, another that ate 50 grams (or four to six) of prunes daily, and one that consumed 100 grams (or roughly 10 to 12) of prunes daily. The Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition article states that 100 grams of prunes “fulfills the daily requirement for boron.”

The team then held a follow-up every six months to run a 3D peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT) scan to measure each participant’s bone health. This stands out from previous studies, which relied on dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) to take 2D imagery of bones, according to a press release.

“When we look at bone mineral density, we’re looking at how much bone there is, but we also want to know about the quality of the bone. When we look at a three-dimensional picture, we can look at bone structure, geometry and micro-architecture. In other words, it tells us how good the bone is,” Mary Jane De Souza, PhD, one of the study’s lead authors and a professor of kinesiology and physiology at Penn State, said in a statement.

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Prunes had a positive effect on bone health.

At the end of the year-long observation period, results found that women who hadn’t incorporated any prunes into their diet saw a decrease in bone density in their shin bone. However, women in the 50-gram-per-day group maintained bone density and strength.

Interestingly, the researchers noted that while the 100-gram-per-day prune group saw bone health benefits, they also had more participants drop out due to the difficulty of having to incorporate so many prunes into their diet each day.

“It’s pretty exciting data for a 12-month study,” De Souza said in a statement. “We were able to maintain and preserve bone at the weight-bearing, cortical bone of the tibia, and the maintenance of cortical bone and bone strength is key to avoiding fracture.”

Other experts agree that the results could have significant implications for the healthcare industry. In an Instagram post on June 17, registered dietitian and menopause expert Jessica Barac emphasized the importance of the findings.

She cited that cortical bone strength (or the outer layer of the bone that can help provide the most support) provided by prune consumption promotes fracture resistance. In addition, the improved tibia bone quality could benefit long-term mobility, while increased bone health was critical for aging strongly.

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Should you add more prunes to your diet?

The researchers concluded that adding more prunes to your diet could help reduce the risk of osteoporosis, but they conceded that more research was necessary.

“This is the first randomized controlled trial to look at three-dimensional bone outcomes with respect to bone structure, geometry, and estimated strength,” De Souza said in a statement. “In our study, we saw that daily prune consumption impacted factors related to fracture risk. That’s clinically invaluable.”

Looking for ways to incorporate the recommended four to six prunes into your diet for the bone health benefits? In her post, Barac includes several helpful ideas, including chopping them up and mixing them into Greek yogurt with nuts and seeds at breakfast, or blending them into a protein smoothie. For lunch or dinner, she also suggests tossing them in a salad with goat cheese and walnuts, or simply snacking on them along with a handful of nuts.

The takeaway:

It appears dairy isn’t the only dietary helper for bone health. A recent study found that postmenopausal female patients who ate four to six prunes per day saw improved bone health over a 12-month follow-up period compared to patients who didn’t.

Women in a third cohort who ate eight to 10 prunes per day also saw improved bone health—but researchers said many of them dropped out of the study due to how difficult it was to incorporate so many prunes into their daily diet. While they concluded that more research is needed, the team hopes their findings can help improve the outlook for aging women when it comes to avoiding osteoporosis.