Should you eat dates before bed or on an empty stomach to get the most health benefits?
Being high in fiber and sugar, dates or khajur often leave people wondering whether they should be eaten after an overnight soak or raw or on an empty stomach or before going to bed. Read on to find out when is the best and worst time to eat dates.
Eating Dates Before Sleep: The Bottom Line
As an energy-dense snack that can be eaten daily, dates are high in calories and easy to overeat all at once.
Besides having an excellent nutritional profile, dates are high in fiber which is important for our overall health, benefits digestive health by promoting regular bowel movements, provides various antioxidants which help reduce the risk of several diseases and also help improve brain function.
However, being high in sugar and fiber, dates often leave people wondering whether they should be eaten after an overnight soak or raw or on an empty stomach or before going to bed. Therefore, it is important to know when is the best and the worst time to eat dates.
Dates do not raise blood sugar quickly, even though they are naturally high in sugar. Therefore, 2-4 dates can be eaten 30-60 minutes before a workout as they provide a constant flow of energy or fuel the body with their slow-release carbohydrates.
Their fiber content allows you to stay full for a long time and keep the feeling of hunger in your back. Thus, dates are the best healthy snack and can even be eaten before bedtime.
From helping to kill intestinal worms, cleansing vital organs, and improving heart and liver health, dates are best eaten early in the morning to benefit from their energy boost. if necessary.
While some studies have highlighted their health benefits by enhancing potency and acting as an aphrodisiac, others have credited the antioxidants in dates with giving skin and hair a natural glow.
Since they promote weight loss, treat constipation, do wonders for bone health, boost immunity, improve brain and heart health, and even prevent diseases like Alzheimer's or different types of cancer or other chronic diseases, experts advise eating dates daily as a snack to help one feel energized without crashing soon after.
They even benefit people with diabetes and prediabetes, as dates contain powerful antioxidants that can reduce inflammation in the body as they are rich in polyphenols as well as several other nutrients and compounds that promote insulin resistance. However, it is advisable to check with your doctor before consuming them if you have diabetes.