Are Dates Safe?

[Dean]

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)

Cool chart, Dan. Yeah, dates are really up there. Way more than dried figs even. Surprised to see blackberries and raspberries so low, because Peat says to avoid berries because they are estrogenic. Perhaps it is the seeds impact on the GI that is estrogenic, rather than the direct phytoestrogen content?

Passionfruit is another one I've avoided...figuring they are juiced seed and all, but doesn't appear too bad. Maybe I can indulge in the Ceres Passion fruit juice (with pear juice) now and again...especially since Florida orange season is coming to an end.

Thanks for posting it.

 

[tara]

Surprised to see blackberries and raspberries so low, because Peat says to avoid berries because they are estrogenic. Perhaps it is the seeds impact on the GI that is estrogenic, rather than the direct phytoestrogen content?

I thought it was mainly the seeds (and maybe skins) of berries Peat was concerned about. I think he's said if you can strain out the seeds that can be pretty good - might have been about a specific berry like blackcurrants for flavouring icecream (yum!).

 

[Steve123]

I absolutely love medjool organic dates, so convenient for me in work! Can eat 8-10 of them a day with no issues. I am not worried about the fiber content and digestibility of them as i do fine, also not worried about the high cals and sugar.
But is the phytoestrogen content of them something to worry about? i've read there is 300 in 100g worth of dates.. When you see foods like flaxseeds have 3793000 in 100g and i know people consuming that on a regular basis with no issues hormonally.. I'm sure the dates would not be an issue? Some people have told me also that the phytoestrogens are not active in the body or would be very minor...I also found this video on phytoestrogens.. (i am NOT a fan of vegan gains btw) So should i not worry about phytoestrogen content of dates and carry on dating away?

 

[Steve123]

@Travis @haidut what's your opinion on the phytoestrogen content of dates? Do you think their an issue in that small amount considering most foods contain phytoestrogen just their a little bit more, I saw on another forum that the liver will get rid of it and also the high sugar content is an even better factor. Also have been told their barely active in the body? I can eat 5-15 dates a day on occasions, what do you think is a threshold? Their so convienent for me at work.
(Only wondering about phytoestrogen content, do not have an issues on dates myself, or care for other things related to serotonin etc..) thanks!

 

[Travis]

Off hand, I wouldn't worry about it. Even foods with higher amounts, like soy, can actually be argued the other way. The phytoestrogens bind to sex hormone receptors but not in a totally promoting way, they can be seen as partial antagonists.

They might inhibit estrogen in small amounts by competition, and only actually become estrogenic in higher amounts as their large concentrations offset their smaller binding affinity and potency.

I personally think the dairy industry played a part in demonizing soy, because "soy milk" was eating into their market. Soy is not the best food and I wouldn't eat it, but I don't think that it causes DD manboobs. Asians have the smallest manboobs on the planet.

I eat probably about 30–40 dates per day, but of the smaller Deglet Noor variety. They come in a prepackaged 10oz container, and I will count them tomorrow when I mindlessly eat them while drinking coffee. I'm guessing around...[Rainman flash!]...exactly 32.

Unfortunately, dates are the one food that is impossible to do a literature search on. The word "date" has a much more popular meaning. I just found an article by searching for "medjool phytoestrogen." This is what I found:

Kuhnle, Gunter GC, et al. "Phytoestrogen content of fruits and vegetables commonly consumed in the UK based on LC–MS and 13 C-labelled standards." Food Chemistry 116.2 (2009): 542-554.

Phytoestrogens are listed all the way down the first column. There are eight pages of tables. You will know when you get to soy by the only six-figure phytoestrogen content you see. The reason dates are a bit high is probably just a consequence of their lower water content. Take a look at the dried fig, plum, prune (dried plum), and pomegranate concentrations. Dates are so calorically-dense that you will eat less than the high-water-content, low-calorie fruits. I think if you were to calculate the phytoestrogen content per calorie, you would find it about average for fruit.

 

[chispas]

Off hand, I wouldn't worry about it. Even foods with higher amounts, like soy, can actually be argued the other way. The phytoestrogens bind to sex hormone receptors but not in a totally promoting way, they can be seen as partial antagonists.

They might inhibit estrogen in small amounts by competition, and only actually become estrogenic in higher amounts as their large concentrations offset their smaller binding affinity and potency.

I personally think the dairy industry played a part in demonizing soy, because "soy milk" was eating into their market. Soy is not the best food and I wouldn't eat it, but I don't think that it causes DD manboobs. Asians have the smallest manboobs on the planet.

I eat probably about 30–40 dates per day, but of the smaller Deglet Noor variety. They come in a prepackaged 10oz container, and I will count them tomorrow when I mindlessly eat them while drinking coffee. I'm guessing around...[Rainman flash!]...exactly 32.

Unfortunately, dates are the one food that is impossible to do a literature search on. The word "date" has a much more popular meaning. — I just found a study by searching "medjool phytoestrogen." This is what I found:

Kuhnle, Gunter GC, et al. "Phytoestrogen content of fruits and vegetables commonly consumed in the UK based on LC–MS and 13 C-labelled standards." Food Chemistry 116.2 (2009): 542-554.

Phytoestrogens are listed all the way down the first column. There are eight pages of tables. You will know when you get to soy by the six-figure phytoestrogen content you see. The reason dates are a bit high is probably just a consequence of their lower water content. Take a look at the dried fig, plum, prune (dried plum), and pomegranate concentrations. Dates are so calorically-dense that you will eat less than the higher water content, lower calorie fruits. I think if you would calculate the phytoestrogen content per calorie, you would find it about average for fruit.

What else do you eat other than dates and coffee? I have also found those two combine very nicely.

 

[Travis]

This week: watermelons, kale, arugula, and coconuts.

 

[Amazoniac]

This week: watermelons, kale, arugula, and coconuts.

Travisord, can you make me cry on how you eat your kale? I know it's raw, but it's a salad or what? And why not cooked?

 

[Travis]

I just eat it plain. You need the small organic leaves for this to taste good this way. It's a bit like drinking booze, in that it tastes horrible at first but it actually becomes enjoyable after awhile. But it's not addictive. This probably sounds strange to people, but many animals eat raw leaves: gorillas, bunnies, pandas, giraffes, and...and pandas?

I do steam them sometimes. Since you'd be eating them mainly for the minerals, cooking doesn't seem that bad. I think the B-vitamins are a bit more stable than vitamin C is, and the minerals are of course indestructible.

Folic acid is one thing that is often overlooked, and this is hard to get elsewhere.

 

[Amazoniac]

I just eat it plain. You need the small organic leaves for this to taste good this way. It's a bit like drinking booze, in that it tastes horrible at first but it actually becomes enjoyable after awhile. But it's not addictive.

How did you come up with this idea? You feel like juicing would be too harsh in terms of antinutrients?

 

[Steve123]

Off hand, I wouldn't worry about it. Even foods with higher amounts, like soy, can actually be argued the other way. The phytoestrogens bind to sex hormone receptors but not in a totally promoting way, they can be seen as partial antagonists.

They might inhibit estrogen in small amounts by competition, and only actually become estrogenic in higher amounts as their large concentrations offset their smaller binding affinity and potency.

I personally think the dairy industry played a part in demonizing soy, because "soy milk" was eating into their market. Soy is not the best food and I wouldn't eat it, but I don't think that it causes DD manboobs. Asians have the smallest manboobs on the planet.

I eat probably about 30–40 dates per day, but of the smaller Deglet Noor variety. They come in a prepackaged 10oz container, and I will count them tomorrow when I mindlessly eat them while drinking coffee. I'm guessing around...[Rainman flash!]...exactly 32.

Unfortunately, dates are the one food that is impossible to do a literature search on. The word "date" has a much more popular meaning. I just found an article by searching for "medjool phytoestrogen." This is what I found:

Kuhnle, Gunter GC, et al. "Phytoestrogen content of fruits and vegetables commonly consumed in the UK based on LC–MS and 13 C-labelled standards." Food Chemistry 116.2 (2009): 542-554.

Phytoestrogens are listed all the way down the first column. There are eight pages of tables. You will know when you get to soy by the only six-figure phytoestrogen content you see. The reason dates are a bit high is probably just a consequence of their lower water content. Take a look at the dried fig, plum, prune (dried plum), and pomegranate concentrations. Dates are so calorically-dense that you will eat less than the high-water-content, low-calorie fruits. I think if you were to calculate the phytoestrogen content per calorie, you would find it about average for fruit.

make lots of sense! Can't describe how happy I am you've cleared this up for me because I've been looking for an answer everywhere.. I'll have to try the deglet noor type when I find some.. just came out of my supermarket with 4 huge packs of mejdool dates which I am going to annihilate when home! Happy dating !

 

[Travis]

How did you come up with this idea? You feel like juicing would be too harsh in terms of antinutrients?

No, I'm just going for simplicity right now. I used to make the most complicated salads: finely cut strands of vegetables of all types to eat with chopstix (chopstick noodle-cut). They were so cool.

I used to enjoy spending time cutting vegetables. I could spend hours just doing that, but I lost interest. The most complicated thing I that I do now is stuffing dates with shredded coconut while waiting for the teakettle to heat-up.

Less time fiddling with food ➞ more time for other things ➞ and no dishes

I'll have to try the deglet noor type when I find some.. just came out of my supermarket with 4 huge packs of mejdool dates which I am going to annihilate when home! Happy dating !

Don't rub it in! I'm stuck here eating pitted Deglet Noor's [sniffles].

Just kidding. All dates are good. I think the best dates are Zahidi's! I've eaten over 30 confirmed pounds of these alone. Dates are one thing that can be affordably ordered online, from California where they are grown.

 

[DaveFoster]

No, I'm just going for simplicity right now. I used to make the most complicated salads: finely cut strands of vegetables of all types to eat with chopstix (chopstick noodle-cut). They were so cool.

I used to enjoy spending time cutting vegetables. I could spend hours just doing that, but I lost interest. The most complicated thing I that I do now is stuffing dates with shredded coconut while waiting for the teakettle to heat-up.

Less time fiddling with food ➞ more time for other things ➞ and no dishes
Don't rub it in! I'm stuck here eating pitted Deglet Noor's [sniffles].

Just kidding. All dates are good. I think the best dates are Zahidi's! I've eaten over 30 confirmed pounds of these alone. Dates are one thing that can be affordably ordered online, from California where they are grown.

I have 15 pounds of the Zahidi variety. They're the sweetest and most calorically dense variety, and they're fantastic.

 

[squanch]

Dates, bananas and citrus fruit all cause a lot of mucus in the back of my throat for the next 24 hours whenever I eat them. Not sure what those fruits have in common, I have no issues with any other fruits.

 

[haidut]

@Travis @haidut what's your opinion on the phytoestrogen content of dates? Do you think their an issue in that small amount considering most foods contain phytoestrogen just their a little bit more, I saw on another forum that the liver will get rid of it and also the high sugar content is an even better factor. Also have been told their barely active in the body? I can eat 5-15 dates a day on occasions, what do you think is a threshold? Their so convienent for me at work.
(Only wondering about phytoestrogen content, do not have an issues on dates myself, or care for other things related to serotonin etc..) thanks!

I think dates are great food and unlikely to cause issues with estrogen. In fact, I think they are known aphrodisiac in male camels, which probably means they lower estrogen. I know, I know, we are not camels

 

[Rafael Lao Wai]

Saw this on the RP facebook group

Even if dates indeed turn out to have some inhibitors of carbohydrate digestion, it shoudln't matter much, since, at least regarding medjool dates, most of the carbs are monosaccharides, that is, free glucose and free fructose, so they are ready to be absorbed. Very little of those carbs is sucrose. And the ratio of glucose to fructose is slightly in favour of glucose, so carbohydrate absorption should happen just fine.

 

[Yody]

Dates have become my favorite fruit after coming off of stupid keto. I would imagine that the variety of minerals and vitamins renders any mild estrogenic effect completely void. They are energy dense and beyond delicious -- Like a supra-mundane caramel candy straight from nature itself.

 

[ursidae]

Possibly the worst fruit for my digestion, raw apples following close second. Very convenient and calorie dense though

 

[Peater]

Why not just cook/stew the dates like you would any other stone/seed fruit?

 

[GelatinGoblin]

Why not just cook/stew the dates like you would any other stone/seed fruit?

Because it's too sugary, heating sugar is bad mkay