Can you eat dates while pregnant?

Yes, you can eat dates while pregnant. Dates are dried fruit, and NHS guidance includes dried fruit as part of a healthy, varied pregnancy diet. They are not on the NHS list of foods to avoid during pregnancy.

You may also have heard that eating dates towards the end of pregnancy can help labour start, shorten labour or reduce the need for induction. Research has looked at some of these claims, but dates are not recommended by the NHS or NICE as a method of inducing labour. It is better to enjoy them as food rather than rely on them to influence how or when labour happens.

For most people, dates can simply be one of many fruit choices during pregnancy.

Are dates safe during pregnancy?

Dates can be included in your diet throughout pregnancy unless you have an allergy or have been given individual dietary advice for a medical reason.

The NHS recommends eating at least five portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables each day during pregnancy. Fresh, frozen, canned, dried and juiced fruit can all contribute.

Dates are usually sold dried, which means their portion size is smaller than that of fresh fruit. NHS healthy eating guidance uses around 30 g of dried fruit as one adult portion.

You do not need to eat dates because you are pregnant. If you enjoy them, though, there is no general NHS advice telling you to avoid them.

How many dates can you eat while pregnant?

There is no NHS pregnancy-specific limit for dates.

For general healthy eating, around 30 g of dried fruit counts as one portion of your 5 A Day. The exact number of dates this represents varies because dates differ considerably in size.

Large Medjool dates, for example, are much bigger than some smaller varieties, so counting individual fruits is less useful than thinking about dried fruit as part of your overall diet.

The NHS recommends eating dried fruit as part of a meal rather than as a between-meal snack because dried fruit can stick to teeth and contribute to tooth decay.

There is no need to follow online rules telling you that every pregnant person should eat a particular number of dates each day.

Are dates high in sugar?

Dates naturally contain sugars, as other dried fruits do.

Drying fruit removes much of its water, so dried fruit is more concentrated than the equivalent amount of fresh fruit. This is one reason the standard NHS portion for dried fruit is around 30 g, compared with around 80 g for fresh, canned or frozen fruit.

That does not make dates a food that needs to be avoided during an uncomplicated pregnancy. Dried fruit is included within NHS healthy eating guidance.

If you have gestational diabetes, pre-existing diabetes or another condition affecting your blood glucose, general portion advice may not be appropriate for you. Your diabetes or maternity team can advise you about fruit and dried fruit within your individual eating plan.

Can eating dates help start labour?

Dates have become popular online as a supposed natural way to prepare for labour. You may see recommendations to start eating a set number each day during the final weeks of pregnancy.

Research has investigated whether date fruit consumption late in pregnancy might affect labour or birth outcomes. However, dates are not recommended in current NHS or NICE guidance as a method for inducing labour.

That distinction matters. A food being studied does not mean there is enough reliable evidence to promise that eating it will start labour, make labour shorter or prevent the need for medical induction.

If you like dates, you can eat them as food. There is no need to treat them as a labour intervention.

If you have questions about induction or your pregnancy continuing beyond your estimated due date, your midwife or obstetric team can explain the options that apply to you.

Do you need to start eating dates at a particular week?

There is no NHS recommendation telling pregnant people to begin eating dates at a particular week of pregnancy.

Specific schedules such as eating a certain number of dates every day from a set gestation are commonly shared online, but they are not part of standard NHS pregnancy dietary guidance.

You can include dates in your usual diet without tying them to a particular stage of pregnancy.

This is especially useful to remember if you do not like dates, cannot eat them or have been advised to manage your carbohydrate intake. You are not missing an essential part of preparing for birth by leaving them out.

Do dates have special benefits during pregnancy?

Dates can contribute to a varied diet, but they do not need to be given special pregnancy status.

Fruit and vegetables provide vitamins, minerals and fibre, and the NHS recommends eating a variety during pregnancy. Dried fruit can contribute towards this recommendation.

No individual fruit can guarantee a particular pregnancy or birth outcome.

If you enjoy dates, they can be a convenient sweet-tasting fruit to add to meals. If you prefer other fruits, those can contribute to a balanced diet too.

Easy ways to include dates

Dates can be eaten on their own or added to familiar foods.

You might have them:

chopped into porridge
added to unsweetened yoghurt
mixed into cereal
included with nuts as part of a meal
chopped into homemade dishes or baking
blended into a smoothie

If dates are blended into a smoothie, remember that NHS guidance limits fruit juice and smoothies to a combined total of 150 ml per day.

For your teeth, the NHS recommends keeping dried fruit to mealtimes rather than regularly eating it between meals.

What about date syrup?

Date syrup is not nutritionally the same as eating whole dates.

Although it comes from fruit, syrup is a concentrated source of sugar. NHS healthy eating guidance recommends limiting foods containing free sugars.

Using a little date syrup as part of your normal diet is different from eating whole dried fruit as a portion of fruit. It should not be assumed to provide the same benefits simply because it is made from dates.

There is also no NHS recommendation to use date syrup during pregnancy to influence labour.

What if you have gestational diabetes?

If you have gestational diabetes, your healthcare team may give you individual advice about carbohydrates, fruit and meal patterns.

Dates contain carbohydrate and natural sugars, so advice intended for the general pregnant population may not fit your personal management plan.

This does not mean everyone with gestational diabetes receives exactly the same dietary instructions. Follow the guidance given by your diabetes or maternity team and ask them specifically about dates if they are something you would like to eat regularly.

Avoid relying on claims that eating dates is necessary for labour preparation if doing so conflicts with your individual dietary advice.

When to get professional advice

You do not normally need to contact your midwife simply because you have eaten dates during pregnancy.

Speak to your midwife, GP or a registered dietitian if you have gestational diabetes, pre-existing diabetes, a food allergy, another condition affecting your diet, or have been given individual dietary advice.

If you are considering eating large amounts of dates specifically because you hope to induce labour, discuss your questions about labour and induction with your midwife or maternity team. Dates are not a substitute for professional assessment or evidence-based induction of labour when this is recommended.

Contact your midwife or GP if you become unwell after eating something you are concerned about. The NHS advises contacting NHS 111 if you are pregnant and feel unwell after eating or drinking something that should be avoided, have vomiting and diarrhoea for more than 48 hours, or have symptoms of listeriosis or toxoplasmosis.

For a life-threatening emergency, call 999.