Are Dates Safe?

[frustrated]

Saw this on the RP facebook group

Any other Date eaters find this disturbing?

"Ranilla et al. (2008) have demonstrated that date sugars are phenol rich, potent antioxidant, and strong inhibitor of α-glycosidase, and α-amylase......

....As date fruit exerts significant inhibitory activity on carbohydrate digestive enzymes, it may be speculated that much of the sucrose present in Deglet Noor exits the digestive tract without being digested and absorbed into circulation."

Don't want that junk fermenting away in my intestines :/

 

[jyb]

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serotonin

In humans, serotonin levels are affected by diet. An increase in the ratio of tryptophan to phenylalanine and leucine will increase serotonin levels. Fruits with a good ratio include dates, papayas and bananas. Research also suggests eating a diet rich in carbohydrates and low in protein will increase serotonin by secreting insulin, which helps in amino acid competition.[15] However, increasing insulin for a long period may trigger the onset of insulin resistance, obesity, type 2 diabetes, and lower serotonin levels.[16][17] Muscles use many of the amino acids except tryptophan, allowing more muscular individuals to produce more serotonin.[18]

 

[jb4566]

By a "good" ratio they really mean bad right? As in Consumption of dates will raise serotonin levels?

 

[jb4566]

Actually, is tryptophan in food a problem at all? This article seems to suggest otherwise:

Although purified tryptophan increases brain serotonin, foods containing tryptophan do not.71 This is because tryptophan is transported into the brain by a transport system that is active toward all the large neutral amino acids and tryptophan is the least abundant amino acid in protein. There is competition between the various amino acids for the transport system, so after the ingestion of a meal containing protein, the rise in the plasma level of the other large neutral amino acids will prevent the rise in plasma tryptophan from increasing brain tryptophan. The idea, common in popular culture, that a high-protein food such as turkey will raise brain tryptophan and serotonin is, unfortunately, false. Another popular myth that is widespread on the Internet is that bananas improve mood because of their serotonin content. Although it is true that bananas contain serotonin, it does not cross the blood–brain barrier.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2077351/

What does everyone think of this?

 

[jyb]

This is because tryptophan is transported into the brain by a transport system that is active toward all the large neutral amino acids and tryptophan is the least abundant amino acid in protein.

Yes, that is why gelatin is good, preventing tryptophan to be transported through. But in meat without gelatin, is it really the less abundant?

Also, that article is for the brain only. If the food raises serotonin elsewhere like the gut can do, isn't it bad too?

 

[j.]

What does everyone think of this?

I wonder what Ray Peat would think of that.

 

[Mittir]

That article is focused on brain serotonin, as if only brain serotonin matters.
Serotonin is a stress hormone.Tryptophan can convert to niancin or serotonin
and it depends on other conditions.
Stress increases the serotonin conversion,PUFA, Estrogen ,lack of B6 and Free fatty acids play a role here.
This RP article answer all these questions.
http://raypeat.com/articles/aging/trypt ... ging.shtml

 

[Dutchie]

What I've understood from GAPS is hat most serotonin isn't produced in the brain but in the gut.

Funny this topic comes up as I'm battling with dates types issues myself lately.....
The article talks about the Deglet Nour type,which I almost never eat.....so I'm wondering if this article is valid for all types of Dates,such as Medjool and those small Iranian dates?The latter causing the issues,so I'm gonna try to back off from them for a while.

 

[Westside PUFAs]

"It is concluded that date consumption (and mainly the Hallawi variety) by healthy subjects, despite their high sugar content, demonstrates beneficial effects on serum triacylglycerol and oxidative stress and does not worsen serum glucose and lipid/lipoprotein patterns, and thus can be considered an antiatherogenic nutrient."

"Most important, fasting serum glucose and triacylglycerol levels were not increased after consumption of either date variety, and serum triacylglycerol levels even significantly"

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19681613

"The fruit of the date palm: its possible use as the best food for the future?"

"In many ways, dates may be considered as an almost ideal food, providing a wide range of essential nutrients and potential health benefits."

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12850886

"Other minerals and salts that are found in various proportions include boron, calcium, cobalt, copper, fluorine, iron, magnesium, manganese, potassium, phosphorous, sodium and zinc."

"Selenium, another element believed to help prevent cancer and important in immune function, is also found in dates. The protein in dates contains 23 types of amino acids, some of which are not present in the most popular fruits such as oranges, apples and bananas. Dates contain at least six vitamins including a small amount of vitamin C, and vitamins B(1) thiamine, B(2) riboflavin, nicotinic acid (niacin) and vitamin A."

 

[YuraCZ]

I love dates, great source of energy and minerals. Also amazing for constipation. But I think I have problem with them due to high histamine content.. Maybe it's just pollen allergy I don't know, but without them I'm constipated for days heh. Btw cheaper dates from Iran. They have same benefits I guess? Or I hope so, because I can't afford Medjool dates..

 

[mt_dreams]

Anytime you can get a baotload of minerals & vitamins along with your sugar, it's a good things.
There are many different types of dates outside of the two tested. I wonder how the other common dates like zahidi, delect, barhi, kadwari would compare?

What would be the estrogen hit with a large amount of dates over the course of a day?

 

[BobbyDukes]

I never responded well to dates. A really problematic food for my picky gut. Perhaps the fibre content, I'm not sure.

 

[Mittir]

I never responded well to dates. A really problematic food for my picky gut. Perhaps the fibre content, I'm not sure.

Besides fiber, date fruit has compound that inhibit carbohydrate digestion.

viewtopic.php?t=1875#p21331
http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10 ... f.2007.689

 

[Nicholas]

wait, fiber is bad? do yall not eat fruit?

 

[pboy]

dates are variable, some ive had were pretty good and others significantly gassy, which seems like not a good thing...definitely a solid food comparatively, but yea, I don't know enough about the varities to talk bout it, I know nutritions is significantly different in various types of dates. THey have good calcium ratio, potassium, pretty decent b vitamins and other minerals...but yea, some of them have irritating tannic fibers which you can peel off if patient and also gas factors which I don't know what that is, maybe it is a phenolic inhibiting the sugar absorption

 

[Gl;itch.e]

Funny that they are supposedly good for constipation. I have never had constipation in my life until I started eating dates. I still eat them but I have to be careful that I don't eat too many in one go. 3-4 here and there seems fine.

 

[charlie]

I never responded well to dates. A really problematic food for my picky gut. Perhaps the fibre content, I'm not sure.

Me either, they cause all kinds of havoc. Which stinks because I like them so much.

 

[tara]

If they agree with you, they are great for always available emergency food, because they keep and carry so well.
I've not felt good on days I've eaten them as my main carb all day, but I eat some more days than not for sheer convenience. (Cheap ones from Iran - usually the only ones available, let alone affordable.)

 

[Mittir]

All the dates i have tried only the Iranian Bam dates has been the least problematic.

 

[Dan W]

Perhaps the quantities are too small to matter, but it worries me a bit that some dates have significantly more phytoestrogen content than something like raisins:
Phytoestrogen content of fruits and vegetables commonly consumed in the UK based on LC–MS and 13 C-labelled standards
(if that link sends you to a summary page rather than the full text, try an incognito / private-browsing window in your browser)