The Nutritional Profile of Dates: Nature's Original Energy Bar
Dates are quite the energy providers! Dates are primarily carbohydrates, making up about 75% of their mass. Within these carbs, you'll find a good chunk of sugars, around 63%, and also a fair bit of dietary fibre, about 8%. The main sugars present are monosaccharides like glucose (23–30%) and fructose (19–28%), with only a negligible amount of sucrose. They contain less than 1% fat, and provide about 2% protein.
Dates also pack in some important minerals. A 100-gram serving is considered a rich source of potassium (22% of the Daily Value). They're also a moderate source (10–19% DV) of pantothenic acid, vitamin B6, magnesium, and manganese.
Despite their sweetness, dates have a relatively low glycemic index (GI) in the range of 38–71, with an average of 53. Their glycemic load (GL) is also low, averaging at 9 for a serving of three fruits (27 grams).
There are reportedly 250-400 date cultivars and varieties.
A cultivar (cultivated variety) is a plant variety that has been intentionally bred or selected for specific characteristics. Cultivars are human-made varieties while species are naturally occurring groups of living organisms that share common characteristics.
The following chart shows the Macronutrient Breakdown of different varieties of Dates available in India -
The data has been gathered from Open Food Facts & the nutrition labels of following products on Amazon.in -
- True Elements Omani Dates
- Tata Sampann Kalmi Dates
- Aladdin Dates Black Kimia Dates
- Nutty Gritties Ajwa Dates
- ZABBAAT Mabroom Dates
- Apis Royal Zahidi Dates
- Bolas Medjool Dates
- Al Barakah Khalas Dates
- KITCHENSMITH Safawi Dates
- Happilo Barhi Dates
More Fun Facts
Dates have a real celebrity status in the religious world. They're highly symbolic in Muslim, Christian, and Jewish faiths. They're practically the VIPs of the fruit bowl.
Dates come in different personalities – there are soft, semi-dry, and dry varieties.
Once dried, dates are basically sugar bombs, making up a whopping 61–68 percent of their mass. No wonder they're often eaten as sweet treats!
They're not just for snacking; they pop up in everything from Moroccan tagines to good old sticky toffee pudding. They even get turned into syrup, vinegar, and non-alcoholic bubbly.
It's not just the fruit that's useful! Date seeds are ground for animal feed and their oil can be used in cosmetics.
Comments
Post a Comment