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Dates nutrition, per serving and per 100 g
| Nutrient | Per serving | Per 100 g |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 75 kcal | 311 kcal |
| Protein | 0.6 g | 2.4 g |
| Carbohydrate (available) | 17.4 g | 72.7 g |
| Dietary fibre | 2.2 g | 9.1 g |
| Fat | 0.1 g | 0.3 g |
Serving: 3 dry dates, about 24 g. IFCT 2017 food code E018, "Dates, dry, dark brown (Phoenix dactylifera)", the mean of 2 regions sampled. IFCT does not report glycaemic index, so this page prints none.
The verdict on dates
Whole fruit
One counted fruit in place of a sweet or a packet snack.
- 0.8 g of protein for every 100 kcal.
- One serving gives 0.6 g of the roughly 58 g of protein a day ICMR-NIN's RDA sets for a 70 kg adult.
- 2.2 g of fibre in a serving.
How dates fits a plan that loses fat and keeps muscle
Dry dates are concentrated fruit: IFCT 2017 lists them at 311 kcal per 100 g, several times a fresh fruit. The fibre, 9.1 g per 100 g, is genuinely useful, but a handful adds up quickly, so decide the number before you open the box.
Two or three dates before a workout make quick fuel, and one date after dinner can end a sugar craving without a dessert. Used that way they help a plan last; eaten by the handful they quietly add a meal's worth of calories.
Dates in an Indian kitchen
Fresh dates, the yellow or red khajur sold in late summer, carry more water and fewer calories per bite than dried dates. Dried dates are useful as a sweetener: two chopped dates in a bowl of oats or a glass of milk replace sugar. Count them out rather than eating from the box, and check that a packet has no added syrup. Date-and-nut ladoos and barfi are dense even without sugar, so treat one as a dessert.
Pair it, or swap it
A date stuffed with an almond or walnut, or dates with a glass of milk, pairs the sugar with fat or protein so it lasts longer.
Worth knowing
Processed dates and date syrup can carry added sugar. Glycaemic index is often asked; IFCT does not measure it, so plan by the carbohydrate per date.
Dates against similar foods
| Food | Energy | Protein | Fibre |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dates | 311 kcal | 2.4 g | 9.1 g |
| Dates, pale brown | 320 kcal | 2.5 g | 8.9 g |
| Dates, processed | 286 kcal | 1.2 g | 6.5 g |
| Banana | 105 kcal | 1.2 g | 1.9 g |