Prunes

[imoldernu]

An exciting discovery, made late in life. Never expected to talk about prunes, much less write on the subject.
Discovered a box of pitted prunes in the back of a pantry shelf. Having run out of pretzel rods, (my favorite snack)... no harm in trying one or two.

This will not speak to many younger people here, as the same health that makes 18 year old kids indestructible, often carries on into middle age, and a healthy exercise regimen can extend the euphoria of the long distance runner.
To a point...

While not a subject of everyday conversation, there comes a time in the lives of many older persons when the body doesn't work quite as well. Muscle strength declines, energy levels drop and (gasp) sometimes that 30 foot digestive system doesn't work quite as well as it did in the earlier days. The pharmaceutical companies recognize this, and capitalize on the hundreds of solutions with pills, powder, tablets, caplets, cleansers and even sprinkle-on grains, all designed to facilitate the flow.

My "discovery" occurred two weeks ago. Two good results.
1. A satisfying snack... that sates the demon, incessant-hunger. Filling, and quite tasty, with the only downside, a sticky finger or two.
2. For the past two weeks, the occasional inconveniece and discomfort of an aging processing system has disappeared.

Silly subject, but in the interests of full disclosure and the common good, this preacher felt it necessary to speak to the congregation, fully realizing that members of the choir will recognize the sermon.

More details here... Prunes
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?dbid=103&tname=foodspice

Best wishes for a fruitful outcome.

 

[REWahoo]

...Never expected to talk about prunes, much less write on the subject.

Discovered a box of pitted prunes in the back of a pantry shelf. Having run...

There is just something wrong in using the words "prune" and "run" in the same paragraph...

 

[Meadbh]

My "discovery" occurred two weeks ago. Two good results.
1. A satisfying snack... that sates the demon, incessant-hunger. Filling, and quite tasty, with the only downside, a sticky finger or two.
2. For the past two weeks, the occasional inconveniece and discomfort of an aging processing system has disappeared.

I'm surprised that you're surprised, imoldernu! In a world where every normal variation in bodily functions has been medicalized, many people are unaware of healthy natural ways to improve performance.

On a personal level, the behaviour of my digestive tract is quite sensitive to what I eat. If I don't get my fruit, vegetables and fibre for a few days, I will be reminded to redress the balance. When things get out of whack, a serving of yogurt with probiotics is very helpful.

http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/dietary-fiber-the-natural-solution-for-constipation

 

[sengsational]

I would never sit down and eat six plums, but it would be no problem to eat 6 prunes. They're very carb calorie dense, so I don't eat them on a 'regular' basis, but I love 'em and, yes, they 'work'.

Like Meadbh, I go with probiotics. But rather than getting the probiotics from yogurt, I just buy about 500 billion of the little buggers in capsule form and take an average of 5 or 10 billion a day.

 

[anethum]

The French have turned a non-exciting food, the lowly prune, into a superb delicacy: Pruneaux d’Agen fourrés. I've had them and they are absolutely delicious.

Prune-Stuffed Prunes | David Lebovitz

 

[imoldernu]

USDA

 

[F4mandolin]

I have always had a lousy diet. In the last year I have started every day with 4 swallows of prune juice......magic. Now granted.....I chase it down with 1-2 cans of diet Coke. And......it tastes terrible. Wait 30 minutes. For the first time in my life (56) I am "regular". I have no urge to eat prunes, although I do like a good plum when they are season.

 

[Meadbh]

I have always had a lousy diet. In the last year I have started every day with 4 swallows of prune juice......magic. Now granted.....I chase it down with 1-2 cans of diet Coke. And......it tastes terrible. Wait 30 minutes. For the first time in my life (56) I am "regular". I have no urge to eat prunes, although I do like a good plum when they are season.

The prune juice is fine, but the 1-2 cans of diet Coke......not so much.

7 side effects of drinking diet soda - Health - MSN Healthy Living

 

[MRG]

Great snack, many benefits. The post brought back memories of my GF, passed in the 1960s. I'd eat prunes with him, two a day with breakfast. Tasted great. I passed on the rest of his breakfast, two eggs whipped up and drank raw. DM said he'd done both all of her life.
MRG

 

[Major Tom]

I grew up in a household in which bathroom humor was appreciated as an honorable art-form. My mother used to joke about the qualities of prune juice, so I grew up knowing that it had magical qualities, though I had never sampled this potion to which had been ascribed great powers.

Then, as an adult, about 15 years ago, I saw a large bottle of it in my local Trader Joe's. I took it home, sampled it, and enjoyed the taste so much that I polished off the whole bottle. Much hilarity and great entertainment ensued. In fact, I think I derived more laughter and merriment from that bottle of prune juice than I have from any alcoholic beverage.

Sadly, TJ's don't sell prune juice anymore but perhaps it's for the better.......

 

[kyounge1956]

A warrior's drink - YouTube

 

[bjorn2bwild]

Other known motivators besides prunes, although not a tasty stand alone snack -
Flax meal (grind flax seed in a blade type coffee mill), psyllium seeds or husks for the low carbers, beans and leafy greens like Kale. Of course exercise stimulates peristalsis - running is especially cathartic.
And that urban myth - Dr Pepper contains prune juice.

 

[Meadbh]

I grew up in a household in which bathroom humor was appreciated as an honorable art-form. My mother used to joke about the qualities of prune juice, so I grew up knowing that it had magical qualities, though I had never sampled this potion to which had been ascribed great powers.

Then, as an adult, about 15 years ago, I saw a large bottle of it in my local Trader Joe's. I took it home, sampled it, and enjoyed the taste so much that I polished off the whole bottle. Much hilarity and great entertainment ensued. In fact, I think I derived more laughter and merriment from that bottle of prune juice than I have from any alcoholic beverage.

Sadly, TJ's don't sell prune juice anymore but perhaps it's for the better.......

That's hilarious!

 

[Meadbh]

I have found I have to be careful with chocolate. I don't believe I am lactose intolerant, but perhaps it is the sorbitol, which is also the "active" ingredient in prunes.

Can Chocolate Cause Diarrhea? | LIVESTRONG.COM

 

[Tortoise]

Eons ago when I was in high school, I worked summers on a prune farm. I drove tractors, tree shakers, and field fork lifts. I ate plenty of prunes straight from the dehydrator, as well as other fresh fruits like cherries, apricots, and pears. It's interesting that pound-for-pound, prunes have 4 times the fiber of fresh cherries, yet cherries always got me to the outhouse quicker.

 

[Amethyst]

Prunes are indeed delicious, and have you tried stewing them with lemon peel? The resulting pudding-like fruit compote is great on oatmeal or with yogurt. MMM, now I am putting prunes on our shopping list!

Of course the fruit packers have taken to calling them "dried plums," which is sad, because "prune" is simply French for plum and is much more elegant!

Amethyst

 

[spncity]

Amethyst beat me to it. I figured the marketing people came up with "dried plums" in order to make the purchase more "palatable" to baby boomers...

Kindest regards.

 

[mpeirce]

Lots of foods get renamed for marketing reasons. Some examples:

rapeseed oil -> canola oil
dolphin fish -> mahi-mahi
Patagonian toothfish -> Chilean sea bass
Chinese gooseberries -> Kiwi fruit
high fructose corn syrup -> corn sugar

 

[GalaxyBoy]

Dang, both of you beat me to it. I just sigh when I see "dried plums" on the shelf at the grocery store.

From FAQ | California Dried Plums:

Are dried plums the same as prunes?

Yes, they are. All prunes are plums, but not all plums are prunes. Prune plum varieties have very high sugar contents that enable them to be dried without fermenting while still containing the pits.

Why was the name prunes changed to dried plums?

Research conducted in the U.S. showed that our target audience, women ages 25 to 54, responded more favorably to the name dried plums. It is also more descriptive for people who don’t know that prunes are fresh plums that have been dried. Outside the U.S., the product is still called prunes.

Try saying that first one five times fast! And why is the target audience women between the ages of 25 and 54? And they admit (as I always suspected) that the reason they use the term "dried plums" is (a) it sounds better after years of prune jokes, and (b) they've dumbed it down, just like many other things.

 

[Major Tom]

I wonder if any of these cows had been drinking prune juice?

90 Cows Exploded A Barn In Germany With Their Farts

 

[Alan]

I've always loved prunes, and school dinners in "junior school" in England often had prunes and hot custard for dessert.

 

[Indigo Mule]

I am one of the cited target demographic members who does, indeed, find dried plums preferable to prunes. The shape your mouth makes (pursed lips, as if in disapproval) and the rhyming with "ewww" put me off prunes.

 

[golftrek]

I eat 4 prunes every morning with my cereal. If I eat more than 4, there is trouble. If I eat less than 4, it is trouble. 4 prunes is the right number for me!

Jo Ann

 

[ERD50]

Amethyst beat me to it. I figured the marketing people came up with "dried plums" in order to make the purchase more "palatable" to baby boomers...

Kindest regards.

I was going to comment on that as well. I think it's kind of funny that I can't find 'prunes' in the stores anymore, but you can find 'dried plums'!

But that got me thinking - what the heck is 'prune juice'? Why would you dry a plum, and then try to get the juice out of it? Isn't it just concentrated plum juice? Wouldn't that make it syrupy sweet (maybe it is, I'd have to check a label I guess).

-ERD50

 

[chris66]

I've loved prunes and prune juice since I was a kid. Have to be careful not to overindulge, as like Tom I once couldn't stop and polished off a whole bottle. Luckily, the only other person around after was my husband.

As to good stuff for the GI tract, I recommend Kefir. I drink a glass of plain Kefir every morning. It's very tangy. I don't like milk (yeah, I know, have loved prune juice and hated milk since I was a kid -- I'm weird). But anyway, it has even more active cultures than yogurt.