California Prunes pack a powerful punch of important vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fiber.
Prunes are a good-for-you snack that offers a wealth of nutrients and health benefits related to healthy digestion, a healthy gut, bone health, heart health, and more.
For under 100 calories, a serving of 4-6 prunes (depending on size) has:
- 3 g fiber, or 11% of the Daily Value, which helps regulate the body’s use of sugars, helping to keep hunger and blood sugar in check.
- 20% of the DV for vitamin K, which is important for blood clotting and metabolism.
- 6% of the DV for potassium, an important mineral that may play a role in maintaining healthy bones and is important for muscle contractions and fluid balance.
- Other important vitamins and minerals like magnesium, boron, riboflavin, niacin, and vitamin b6.
- A low Glycemic Index (GI) of 29.
- No added sugar, cholesterol, sodium or fat – and how many snacks can make that claim?
Key Benefits of Prunes
California Prunes are big on “no” – like no added sugar, no cholesterol, no sodium, and no fat. But they’re rich in nutrition and offer a sweet, delectable taste that provides a full serving of “yes” – whether as a snack or with breakfast, lunch or dinner.
In a study published in 2022, drinking prune juice helped alleviate constipation without side effects. A 2019 study had similar findings with whole prunes. These built on earlier studies concluding that prunes worked better than psyllium, the main ingredient in many over-the-counter laxatives, for relieving constipation. Most recently, a 12-month study among older women eating prunes daily showed a notable increase in a certain type of beneficial gut bacteria.
Several studies among postmenopausal women, who are at increased risk for osteoporosis, have shown bone-protective effects when consuming about five to six prunes (50 grams) a day. In one of these, study authors noted there was “high compliance and retention” over the 12-month study — in other words, the women in the study enjoyed eating prunes daily and didn’t tend to forget or drop out. In another study, authors said the bone-protective health of prunes in postmenopausal women may be attributed to their unique combination of minerals, vitamin K, phenolic compounds and fiber, which may work together for greater effect.
Building on other research, a 2021 study found that postmenopausal women who ate 50 to 100 grams of prunes daily for six months had lower total cholesterol, oxidative stress and inflammatory markers than those in a group that didn’t eat prunes.
Research has shown that eating prunes as a snack can help curb hunger more than a higher carbohydrate snack with the same number of calories. A 2021 study showed that men and women who ate prunes had a reduced appetite as compared to a control group, and snacking on prunes may have contributed to their weight loss – but this needs to be studied further. Overall, the study participants liked snacking on prunes and said it was an easy change to make in their diet.
Several studies have suggested that regularly eating foods high in polyphenols, including prunes, has been associated with “reduced aging in humans and may exert beneficial effects on improving insulin resistance and related diabetes risk factors, such as inflammation and oxidative stress,” according to a 2021 research overview. Another article notes that eating polyphenol-rich foods throughout life “holds a potential to limit neurodegeneration and to prevent or reverse age-dependent deteriorations in cognitive performance.”