Eating Dates to Help Induce Labor

Red Dates are a surprising, but evidenced-based way to help get the cervix soft and ready for labor. The mechanism of action of how they help to soften the cervix remains unclear, but the current theory is that dates help with oxytocin release. 

Studies have shown that dates:

• Help to soften or “ripen” the cervix
• Decrease the chance of needing a medical induction of labor
• Increase how dilated your cervix is when you arrive at the hospital in labor
• Require less use of pitocin (IV medication) to stimulate labor

I recommend that my patients eat three large (Medjool) dates or six small dates daily starting around 36-37 weeks and until labor starts. They are quite sugary, so try blending with some Greek or full-fat yogurt, nut butter, and frozen banana. You may add cacao or cocoa powder for a nice “chocolate milkshake” dupe! You could also make energy balls with nuts, dates, and a blender.  The only word of caution is if you have gestational diabetes or diabetes outside of pregnancy, eat dates alongside a protein source and be mindful of your glucose values.

 This post is from labor and birth FAQs which I wrote for www.expectful.com.

Sources:

Al-Kuran O, Al-Mehaisen L, Bawadi H, Beitawi S, Amarin Z. The effect of late pregnancy consumption of date fruit on labour and delivery. J Obstet Gynaecol. 2011;31(1):29-31. doi: 10.3109/01443615.2010.522267. PMID: 21280989. 

Razali N, Mohd Nahwari SH, Sulaiman S, Hassan J. Date fruit consumption at term: Effect on length of gestation, labour and delivery. J Obstet Gynaecol. 2017 Jul;37(5):595-600. doi: 10.1080/01443615.2017.1283304. Epub 2017 Mar 13. PMID: 28286995.