By Engineer Abdel-Daym Al-Kahil
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) gave a special attention for Dates as part of
the believer's diet especially during the Holy month Ramadan. Allah
Almighty mentioned Palm trees many times in the Quraan, and made it
the food of the dwellers of Paradise, So what are the secrets of this
great nutriment? Is it possible to think of using dates as remedy for
some diseases? What do scientists of today say about dates?
Dates are one of the most nourishing fruits and It's called sometimes
"Bread of Desert", More than two third of dates' weight is natural
sugar. This fruit was highly esteemed by the ancient civilizations
more than 5000 years ago; ancient Egyptians considered dates as a
symbol of fertility, while the Romans and the Greeks used it to
ornament their stately triumph pageants[1]. Today, dates are widely-
grown in the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Egypt, Iraq, Spain, Italy and
the United States. There are more than 600 varieties of dates[2].
Next, we are going to explore the usefulness of dates to humans
throughout the different stages of their lives.
Dates and the Prebirth period
Dates stimulate the uterus by regulating And brisking it's
contractions which facilitate delivery. The uterus is a relatively
large muscular organ and it urgently requires an adequate supply of
natural sugar during labor and delivery. Being laxative, dates are
essential for pregnant women before delivery in order to purge the
colon and intestine and to facilitate delivery. The miraculousness of
the Quranic verse shows evidently as Allah tells Mary: (And shake the
trunk of the palm tree towards thee - thou wilt cause ripe dates to
fall upon thee) [Mariam - 25]
Nutriment and medicine for children
Dates contain natural sugar which is easily absorbed and digested,
thus, it is safe and comforting for children's stomach and intestine.
And the dates juice is useful especially if we mix it with Milk to
become very nourishing and restorative drink for children and adults.
Dates and honey paste is used for the treatment of diarrhea and
dysentery in children but it should be taken three times a day.
This paste also comforts and hardening the gums during teething and
facilitates the process.
It is advisable to purchase the good varieties of dates and to wash
them thoroughly before use especially when used as food or remedy for
children. Here, we should mention the prophetic tradition of (Al
Tahneek); rubbing the newborn's mouth with a well-chewed date and
feeding him with it. Science has proved that giving the newborn some
sugar dissolved in water provides the child with the necessary
nutrition and improves their immunity against diseases.
And when we know that sugar in dates is the most easily absorbed and
digested type of sugar so it will be suitable nutriment for newborns
but the dates should be well-chewed or soaked in water to be easy for
the newborn to take. This proves that the great prophet (PBUH)
preceded today's doctors to this type of nutrition. It's no wonder
that he preceded them as he is the messenger of their God.
Figure (1) Dates are the best nutriment for newborns since pregnancy
and during breast feeding
An effective treatment for constipation
Dates can be used in the treatment of intestinal disturbances and it
also helps the intestine perform their function effectively, and
helps
establishing a colony of friendly bacteria in the intestines. Dates
are also highly beneficial in the treatment of constipation as the
roughage provided by it stimulates sluggish bowels. They should be
immersed in water at night and taken after making them into fine
syrup
the next morning to secure laxative effect [3].
A Remedy for Sexual Debility
Date syrup can be used as a treatment for weak heart. It can also be
use for the treatment of sexual weakness. When it's mixed with milk
and honey, dates can be used as a tonic for the treatment of sexual
disturbances for both sexes, And such syrup strengthens the body and
raises its energy levels. The elderly would benefit from this syrup
too. It improves their stamina and purges their bodies from the
toxins
that have accumulated in their cells along the years.
An Ideal Nutriment for Fasters
It was very weird that western physicians who treat their patients by
fasting advise them by taking the natural sugar in fruits and water
when breaking the fast [4]. And when we know that dates contain a
high
ratio of such easily-absorbed sugar then dates and water are the best
nutriments for fasters.
Here we remember the Hadith of our prophet (PBUH) : (When any of you
breaks his fasting he should eat dates cause dates are blessing, if
he
didn't find dates then drink water cause water is purifying)
[Narrated
by Abo Dawood].Here we see that the prophet (PBUH) showed us the
principles of effective fasting, by eating dates and drinking water
at
breakfast centuries before Westerns.
The prophetic wisdom out of having Dates for breakfast might be
reduce
the hunger and consequently, reduce the amounts of food consumed;
therefore the fasting will be effective and useful. And if we
remember
that fasting consider the best weapon to excise toxics out of the
body, then having dates ( toxin-resistive ) when you break your fast
represent a real integrated treatment against weakness and fatigue
resulted from the accumulation of toxic chemicals and heavy metals in
the cells of the body.
Figures (2) Date lose 1/3 of their water content when dried in the
sun. Dried dates contain a high ratio of natural sugar hence; they
are
the best food for fasters
A Treatment for Obesity
The wide variety of nutritious elements in dates makes it hunger-
resistive! And when we know that the cause behind Obesity is a
persisting feeling of hunger and an appetite for food which drives a
person to consume larger amounts of fats and sugar when he eat his
meal. So treatment by eating few dates when feeling hungry helps
reduce hunger and be filled. These dates will provide the body with
the necessary sugar and stimulate the intestine which reduce hunger
greatly, and eventually, reduce food consumption. The miraculousness
of the prophet's saying shows as he said: (A household that has dates
doesn't feel hunger) [narrated by Muslim]. We can conclude that dates
can be used to treat Obesity!.
A Remedy for Lever and Inflammations
Dates remedy Lever and purge it from toxins, Breaking the fast with
dates, is one of the most magnificent of natural remedies for the
maintenance and purging the Lever from accumulated toxins. And also
drinking dates juice could be used in the treatment of sore throat,
various types of fever, rhinorrhia and common cold[5].
A Remedy for Intoxication
Dates are an excellent remedy for alcoholic intoxication. In such a
case, drinking water in which fresh dates have been rubbed or soaked
will bring quick relief[3]. Here we'd like to mention one of the
prophet's (PBUH) Hadith in which he referred to dates as a remedy for
intoxication. Prophet (PBUH) said: (Who eats 7 pressed dates in the
morning, will not be inflected with witchcraft or poisoning that day)
[Narrated by Abu Dawood]
If we deeply study the medical implications of the Hadith, we realize
its miraculousness:
1- The prophet (PBUH) used the number 7. This number has significance
in the universe, the Quran and the prophetic tradition. It's enough
to
know that the first number mentioned in the Quran was Number 7.
2- 7 dates weigh approximately 70 grams which provides a sufficient
intake of a wide variety of minerals, salts and vitamins for the
body.
3- This amount is sufficient to purge the body from the accumulated
toxins in the cells; like heavy metals, lead as an example. The
accumulation of toxins has increased nowadays due to widespread
water,
air and food pollution.
4- The Hadith implicitly referred to the toxins entering the body as
(Poison). He also indicated that eating dates reduces the dangers
such
toxins impose the body to.
5- As for the word (Witchcraft); only God knows what was meant with
it.
6- The Hadith doesn't imply that taking poison after eating seven
dates would be completely harmless, In fact, doing this deliberately
is considered as harming one's self on purpose and this is forbidden
in Islam. But we have to undersand that Hadith means that eating
seven
dates each morning reduces the harmful effects of toxicants. In order
to make the process more effective, regularity with eating seven
dates
in the morning should be maintained. As our Prophet (PBUH) asked us
to
do.
And we should understand from the Hadith that eating dates everyday
regularly And in order will effect our psychological state and make
it
more stable, God only know the truth.
Figure (3) All the parts of the palm tree are beneficial! The leaves
are for building house roofs; the wood is for heating; dates are
highly nutritious, even date seeds can be immersed in water and given
to horses, camels and hens as perfect food.
Date in numbers:
Having high medical and nutritious value, dates are expected to be
the
best food for the future. Dates contain as high a percentage as 88%
of
carbohydrate (starch), (2.5-5%) of fat, (2.3-5.6%) of Protein and
(6.4-11.5%) of Vitamins and dietary fibre. The flesh contains (0.2 -
5%) of oil, whereas the seed's weight is (7.7 -9.7%) oil. The weight
of the seed is (6.6 - 14.2%) of the date's weight.
Dates contain Vitamins A, B1 and B2, And contain Fluorine who defeats
teeth decay. Other minerals that are found in various proportions in
dates include boron, calcium, cobalt, copper, iron,
magnesium,
manganese, potassium, phosphorous, sodium and zinc. Additionally, the
seeds contain aluminum, cadmium, chloride, lead and sulphur in
various
proportions. Selenium, element believed to help prevent cancer and
important in immune function, is also found in dates.
For all of the previously mentioned benefits, date is the ideal food
for the future. The fruit's production has increased 3 times over 40
years, whereas the world population has only doubled, an indication
to
the rapid growth of the production of this ideal fruit[1].
And finally...
Dear Believer if you are feeling weak, don't hesitate to take 7 dates
in the morning as the prophet (PBUH) recommended. those Seven dates
weigh around 70 gm, so if you take them, then you actually took 70
milligrams of calcium- which is very useful for the bones, joints and
nerves, 35 milligrams of phosphorus which is nutritious to the brain
and 7 milligrams of iron which is strengthens the body in general and
the heart in particular.
It's also suitable for reducing weight as it only contains 0.25 gm of
fat. So if you suffer from Obesity, then this meal is the right thing
for you. This prophetic meal regulates and stimulates the bowels with
the10 gm of dietary fiber it contains.
So won't you say yes to the prophetic advice?!
By: Abdul Dayem Al-Kaheel
A Researcher in the field of Miraculousness of the Quran and Sunnah
newmirac...@hotmail.com
Trnslated by: Amato Allah ( Nada )
E-mail: nonameform...@yahoo.co.uk
References:
[1]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q...eve&db=PubMed&...
[2]
http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node=date
[3]
http://www.indiangyan.com/books/heal...eal/date.shtml
[4]
http://www.fasting.com/index.html
[5]
http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/m...gin%20and%20Di...
[6]
http://www.dipbot.unict.it/Palms/descr02.html
Secrets of Remedy by Dates 
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