Top photo by pixabay.com/users/Enotovyj-1196066
As recommended in the Qur'an and the sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad, dates are the most ideal fruit for iftar, because they contain many blessings from Allah SWT. Al-Qur'an has also been mentioned, Allah SWT exceeds the portion of dates from other fruits. Here are the benefits of break fasting with dates that you can get.
1. Controlling Blood Sugar
Enduring hunger and thirst for more than 13 hours makes an empty stomach. When break fasting, people are encouraged to fill their stomach with sweet food first in order to increase energy and blood sugar. On the other hand, consuming sugar for iftarfast should also be careful so that your blood sugar doesn’t surge significantly.
Besides being recommended in the Qur'an and the Sunnah of the Prophet, dates are also sweet food with natural sugar source that can keep your blood sugar stable. In addition to sugar, dates also contain high fiber which is useful for preventing blood sugar levels from rising after eating.
Dates also include foods that contain low glycemic index and are recommended for preventing diabetes.
2. Preparing Your Stomach
In addition having natural sugar source, dates also contain compounds that can activate your digestive organs. Eating dates when break fasting will help prepare your stomach so that it can digest other foods.
3. Smooth Digestion
Eating patterns that change during fasting in Ramadan coupled with many kind of foods can increase the risk of constipation. The high fiber content in dates can prevent digestive problems, especially constipation. Reported from Healthline, studies show that people who consume dates every day can defecate regularly.
4. Adjust Blood Acidity
Not only can control blood sugar, dates can also maintain the level of acidity in your blood. Dates contain alkaline salt which is useful for balancing or adjusting the acidity of your blood that arises from consuming too much meat and carbohydrates when break fasting.
If blood contains high levels of acid, it can be risky to bring various diseases such as kidney stones, gout, and high blood pressure.