Benefits of Prunes
Prunes are often overlooked as a fruit, but they deliver a surprising number of benefits and can be added to your diet in a number of ways.
What are Prunes?
A prune is a dried plum, the most common form of which is scientifically known as Prunus domestica. A prune has a slightly shriveled appearance, as much of the water from the original plum has been removed through various techniques. Plums come in more than 1,000 varieties, but their size, most commonly, lies between a lime and a peach.
Prunes have a sweet flavor, and are highly fibrous, making it a bit of a task to chew them, but that same fibrous nature is what gives these dried fruits such a healthy profile. Plums and prunes are good for your overall health in some of the same ways, but as with many dried fruits, prunes offer slightly different benefits and have some advantages over their fresh forms. Namely, dried fruits can keep longer than fresh varieties, making them easier to transport and ensuring that food isn’t wasted. Some experts say that prunes have been consumed for more than 10,000 years, making them one of the oldest – and most delicious – traditions of humans.
Nutrition
When it comes to nutrition, these dried fruits are packed with beneficial vitamins, minerals, fiber, carbohydrates, and fat. Just a quarter cup of prunes provides more than 12% of your daily fiber needs, as well as 6% of your vitamin K needs each day. This is in addition to good amounts of manganese, potassium, copper, zinc, and calcium, along with beta-carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin, important antioxidants that can improve health in various ways.
Prunes Benefits
When consumed regularly, prunes can deliver some excellent benefits to your health, including regulating your bowel movements, preventing cancer, boosting bone health, protecting eye health, and regulating cholesterol. Let us look at these benefits in detail.
Prevent Cancer
As mentioned above, the antioxidants found in these dried fruits can protect the eyes, but reducing free radical damage in the body can prevent other types of cancer as well since these free radicals can increase mutations and stimulate the development of cancerous growth.
Improve Digestion
One of the main reasons people eat prunes is to improve their bowel movements. These dried fruits are a good source of dietary fiber and are known to have laxative qualities. Prune juice is a very popular beverage, particularly with older generations, who want to improve their digestive function, eliminate constipation, and reduce inflammation in the gut.
Regulate Cholesterol
Fiber, in prunes, is not only good for digestion, but also for eliminating excess cholesterol from the body. This balancing of cholesterol will lower your chances of atherosclerosis and other cardiovascular issues, such as heart attacks and strokes.
Improve Bone Strength
With a diverse range of minerals and other key nutrients the body needs for bone strength and development, these dried fruits are ideal if you want to avoid osteoporosis and other bone-related issues. If your blood doesn’t have enough calcium or other minerals, the body will leach it from your bones, thus weakening them. For this reason, consuming mineral-rich foods like prunes is an excellent choice.
Promote Eye Health
The compounds found in prunes, namely lutein, and zeaxanthin, are powerful antioxidants that can help to prevent the negative impact of free radicals in the body. In the case of these two antioxidants, they can help prevent macular degeneration and reduce the risk of oxidative stress in your eyes, keeping your vision sharp and clear as you age.
Detoxify the Body
Although prunes are dried fruits, they are still composed of roughly 30% water and have certain diuretic qualities, which can help flush the body of unwanted toxins before they can build up and cause harm to your various systems.
Adding Prunes to Your Diet
These dried fruits are generally consumed by themselves as a quick, sweet snack, but as mentioned, many people enjoy blending the fruit into a thick juice as well. Prunes can be mixed into various desserts and baked good, but fresh plums are typically preferred for this purpose.
