Containing Simple Sugar, Dates Are Not Only Suitable for Breaking the Fast

JAKARTA - Dates have a number of benefits, including improving brain function and heart health. Eating dates can also help digestion and possibly relieve childbirth.

During the fasting period, including Ramadan fasting, Muslims are required not to eat or drink anything from dawn to sunset. Fasting itself has been proven to have a number of benefits for health, ranging from losing weight, controlling blood sugar, to lowering bad cholesterol in the blood.

The benefits of fasting can be obtained if applied in the right and healthy way, including by consuming healthy foods at iftar and suhoor. Dates are one of the snacks recommended for consumption both at iftar and suhoor. Dates, according to Cynthia Sass, M.Ph, RD, have many benefits for health.

Dates are synonymous with one of the foods for breaking the fast. The nutritional content of dates makes it the perfect food to consume after fasting for a long time.

"When you break your fast, your body will try to produce glucose, because that's what it needs as an energy source," said Shehnaz Bashir, a registered dietitian in the United Kingdom who is also fasting.

Dates are the fruit of a typical plant that has been cultivated for thousands of years in the Middle East and North Africa. The majority of date producers are countries whose territory is a subtropical desert such as the Middle East region such as the Arabian Peninsula and northern Africa.

However, dates can still be planted in areas other than the area, the most important thing is that the region has a dry climate so that it can support the growth of dates. Although it can grow in various countries, dates that grow in their native areas have some differences with dates that grow outside the Middle East. For example, dates that grow in Indonesia cannot produce dates that are tamr (final or dry), can only reach the stage of ankhala (early) and ruthob (middle).

Egypt is the world's largest date producer with an average production of 1.7 million tons in the period 2020-2022. In 2022, globally, date harvest reached 9.7 million tons with a harvest area of 1.2 million hectares.

Breaking the fast by eating dates is the sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad SAW. Medically, dates have a number of benefits. With its nutritional content, dates are the perfect food to eat after fasting for a long time.

The high sugar content in dates helps increase blood sugar levels in the body much faster than other foods that take longer to be absorbed by the body.

"Dates are quite unique because they contain simple sugars, but also complex carbohydrates," said Bashir.

That means the fruit releases energy slowly throughout the day. So it can be said that this is the ideal content when someone does not eat for a long time. And, even though it is a dried fruit, dates can also help keep the body hydrated. Dates naturally contain the electrolyte potassium, which acts like a magnet for water, drawing fluids into the body's cells.

"Many people break their fast with dates and water, which are very good for energy and hydration," continued Bashir.

Not only is it useful when consumed during the fasting, Cynthia Sass, a registered public health and nutritionist, also mentions a number of other benefits of dates for the body. Dates, said Cynthia, can help manage blood sugar.

Despite having a sweet taste, eating dates does not significantly affect blood glucose (sugar) levels because it has a low glycemic index (GI). GI measures how quickly food increases your blood sugar levels.

"Foods with a low GI, such as dates, increase your blood sugar levels slowly. Regulating blood sugar levels helps manage type 2 diabetes and prevent heart disease," said Cynthia, quoting Health.

Dates can also improve digestive health with fiber. Experts recommend that women consume 25 grams of fiber every day, while men consume 38 grams. For information, three Medjool dates without seeds contain 4.8 grams of fiber, which means they meet 13-19 percent of the daily target.

In a small study, researchers randomly assigned 22 women and men to eat dates every day or a mixture of carbohydrates and sugar for 21 days. Those who ate dates were found to have more frequent bowel movements.

Dates can be used as a sweetener for food or other recipes that are healthier. The sugar content in dates occurs naturally because dates are whole fruits that are not processed. The nutrition information on the energy bar can list 0 grams of added sugar if it is only sweetened with dates.

Several pieces of evidence suggest that the high polyphenol content in dates may benefit the heart. Polyphenols are bioactive compounds naturally found in plants. Polyphenols in dates help increase high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL) and reduce total cholesterol. Both significantly affect the risk of heart disease.

The authors randomly assigned 100 adults with type 2 diabetes to eat three dates every day for 16 weeks or not eat dates at all.

The results showed that people who consumed dates experienced a statistically significant decrease in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL) and total cholesterol.

Eating dates can also help improve brain function. A study found that dates benefit from lowering inflammatory markers, such as interleukin 6 (IL-6) in the brain. High levels of IL-6 are associated with a higher risk of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's.