I began the week baking chocolate chip cookies and end the week with a more natural dessert, Raw Brownies. As my NutriSense dietitian is well aware however, I don't eat these foods simply for dessert! The past couple of days I experimented with Medjool dates either alone or combined with proteins and fat in the morning, afternoon and evening. I was introduced to Medjool dates about 15 years ago when I attended a healthy food prep course hosted by a local holistic health practioner, Karen Urbanek. Her business name was "Karen's Energy" and her performance exceeded her name! Dates pack a punch of antioxidants and nutrients and according to Web MD, "Stimulate the immune system, reduce inflammation, prevent DNA damage and improve hormone regulation." And for those of us with a sweet tooth, they are certainly nature's candy. Their high sugar content gives them a sweet, caramel flavor that makes them a useful sweetener for many dishes. For this particular recipe, just spread the chocolate, caramel goodness onto wax paper in an 8X8 dish. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes then cut into squares. Mine were a little crumbly so I rolled them into "energy bites" instead. Delicious!
You can see below the variability that exists simply between the time of day. My body repsonded more favorably to the dates/sugar content mid-day (peak 96 mg/dL) versus later in the afternoon (peak 148mg/dL). The ingredients were identical however the serving size might have been a bit bigger in the late afternoon as well. Obviously, none of this is scientific as I am not a scientist nor practicing a controlled experiment but rather my general observations. If you want to see more controlled experiments, I highly recommend the Glucose Goddess on Instagram and her new book, The Glucose Revolution. She is a scientist and biochemist and conducts her work in a lab with stringent controls. My recommendation is to purchase the book on Audible and listen to it after each meal as you take a 10 minute walk. There is excellent science to support that merely a brief walk after eating can dramatically improve your body's response to glucose. I have noticed the positive effects myself this week...that is for a later post!
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Technically pairing up a carb like dates with a fat or protein is supposed to help reduce the spikes, however the time of day also matters. A couple of nights ago I had 4 dates with almond butter and my blood sugar elevated to 159mg/dL, even higher than my chocolate chip cookies. This response is likely multi-factorial including the time of day plus a larger serving size. Regardless, for my body, even with the beneficial nutrients, I believe Medjool dates should be more an ocassional indulgence rather than a mainstay.
This was my dietitian's impression of my response to Medjool dates:
June 16th 11a.m. Post-prandial glucose - For "after eating" values, we want our peak glucose to be less than 140 and we want glucose to return back to pre-meal value within 2-3 hours of eating. Here we are looking at both how high the glucose goes and how quickly it comes back to normal. We want to avoid dramatic spikes and prolonged increases.
And her follow-up later that afternoon: Dates - As far as the dates, I think you are spot on in regards to the timing being the culprit here. We know that the hormones that help us digest food and clear out glucose work on a circadian rhythm (just like our sleep hormones!). So we generally tolerate food not as well later in the evenings. Many people notice that they can eat the same exact meal in the middle of the day and have a drastically lower glucose response than if that same meal is consumed late at night. It might be key to keep those dates reserved for midday when we are most insulin sensitive!
This was my dietitian's impression of my response to Medjool dates:
June 16th 11a.m. Post-prandial glucose - For "after eating" values, we want our peak glucose to be less than 140 and we want glucose to return back to pre-meal value within 2-3 hours of eating. Here we are looking at both how high the glucose goes and how quickly it comes back to normal. We want to avoid dramatic spikes and prolonged increases.
- Your highest blood sugar over the past few days was 159 mg/dL yesterday evening after your dates dipped in almond butter. Modifying that meal (less dates, adding more protein, meal sequencing, adjusting the timing) is a great tactic to lower this peak, as well as trying the same meal out under different scenarios, such as before a walk! We can dive more into this as we go! You can see this data on postprandial values by going to Analytics> Stats> Max.
And her follow-up later that afternoon: Dates - As far as the dates, I think you are spot on in regards to the timing being the culprit here. We know that the hormones that help us digest food and clear out glucose work on a circadian rhythm (just like our sleep hormones!). So we generally tolerate food not as well later in the evenings. Many people notice that they can eat the same exact meal in the middle of the day and have a drastically lower glucose response than if that same meal is consumed late at night. It might be key to keep those dates reserved for midday when we are most insulin sensitive!
My son, working 10 hour days often in 90 degree heat, will benefit from the nutrients and glucose housed in the dates! He needs the energy, plus he is extra lean and boosting his caloric intake will serve him well. This particular batch was quite crumbly so I just worked my mom magic and converted the brownies to energy bites. (I should work on the presentation of these date balls!)
This recipe is from one of my favorite nutritional books, The Conscious Cleanse by Jo Schaalman and Julie Pelaez. If you want a quick treat without all the added sugars and flours that go along with traditional brownies, these just might satisfy your sweet tooth and provide extra nutrients. Thank you for reading!
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