Dried

Plum Consumption Improves Antioxidant Capacity and Reduces Inflammation in

Postmenopausal Women

Michelle Nakamichi-Lee, Shirin Hooshmand, Mark Kern, Arshya Ahouraei, Mee Young Hong

School of Exercise and Nutritional Sciences, San Diego State University, San Diego CA USA
92182

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death worldwide and menopause
significantly raises risk in women. Abnormal blood lipids, inflammation and oxidative
stress play significant roles in the pathophysiology of cardiovascular disease development.
Dried plums contain bioactive components that have demonstrated antioxidant and antiinflammatory effects and therefore may be beneficial in reducing CVD risk. The objective of
this study was to determine the effects of dried plum consumption on lipid profiles, oxidative
stress, antioxidant capacity and inflammation in postmenopausal women. Another goal was to
determine if a moderate dose of 50 g/day is equally effective to a high dose (100 g/day). A 6month controlled clinical trial was conducted in which 48 postmenopausal women were
randomly assigned to consume 0, 50 or 100 g of dried plum each day. Serum lipid profiles,
antioxidant capacity, antioxidant enzyme activities, lipid peroxidation, inflammatory biomarkers
and liver function enzyme activities were analyzed at baseline and after 3 and 6 months of
intervention. No significant differences in outcome variables were detected between the 50 g and
100 g dried plum groups at any time point, so data from the two dried plum groups were
combined. At 3 and 6 months, total cholesterol (p=0.037), lipid peroxidation (p=0.031) and
interleukin-6 (p=0.046) were significantly lower in the combined dried plum group compared to
the control group. Total antioxidant capacity (p=0.036), superoxide dismutase (p=0.038) and
catalase (p=0.05) activities were significantly greater after dried plum consumption at 3 and 6
months compared to the control group. Additionally, serum levels of the liver function enzymes
alanine transaminase (p=0.001), alkaline phosphatase (p=0.001), lactate dehydrogenase
(p=0.038) and creatine kinase (p=0.044) were significantly lower at 3 and 6 months in the dried
plum groups than the control group. These findings indicate that consumption of 50-100 g of
dried plum per day improves CVD risk factors in postmenopausal women as exhibited by lower
total cholesterol, oxidative stress and inflammatory markers.
Support or Funding Information
The study was funded by San Diego State University, the Kasch-Boyer Endowed Scholarship in
Exercise and Nutritional Sciences, and the California Dried Plum Board.