Red Grapefruit: Eat It for Your Bones?

If you enjoy the refreshing taste of red grapefruit, you may also know it does a lot more than simply taste great. You may already be aware of the vitamin and mineral content of red grapefruit – how it provides a big shot of Vitamin C, folic acid and potassium – and you may also know about its protective qualities against cancer and heart disease. But did you know that red grapefruit may also help save your bones?

If the results of a 2008 study by researchers at Texas A&M University continue to be duplicated and expanded upon, the so-far-limited arsenal against osteoporosis may very well increase to include one of the country’s favorite citrus: red grapefruit.

In an experiment that included the effects of consuming a daily diet of red grapefruit by a group of laboratory rats, scientists found that bone resorption decreased, while bone mineral build-up and calcium absorption increased. The researchers are quick to add that much further study needs to be done to verify this latest bonus of consuming the red grapefruit, but those who have faith in this citrus’ other exemplary characteristics agree that it’s certainly a promising start.

Osteoporosis affects bone by lowering its mass. This, in turn, leads to a much greater risk of bone fracture, particularly in the hip bones, along the spine and in the wrists. With an approximate 75 million osteoporosis sufferers (with women four times as likely to develop it as men) in the United States, Japan and Europe, current treatments include dietary improvements as well as supplements. The consumption of red grapefruit could add to these methods of fighting osteoporosis in a delightfully delicious way.

The hopeful results of the 2008 study could add a whole new reason for red grapefruit lovers to up their intake of this exceptional and versatile fruit. But before stocking your larder with more cases of red grapefruit than you and 10 others can eat, it may be wiser to wait a while. The question of red grapefruit and its effects on combating osteoporosis is still in its early stages of being answered. If the first study’s results are duplicated and with further experiments using animals, then trials will finally need to be carried out on human beings. Then, and only then, can the jury come back with the verdict: red grapefruit does, indeed, help save our bones.

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