If you’re on TikTok at the moment, you would have noticed the sudden stream of butter-filled dates content for Ramadan.
The dates are cut in half, the pit removed and a pat of butter sandwiched in between. The recipe calls for pure butter and not margarine. Some content creators even add honey for sweetness or walnuts for a crunch.
If you’ve taken a liking to these butter-filled dates and have been having more than one or two pieces a day, heads up, it might not be good for your health.
Public Health Malaysia (PHM) recently put a Facebook post that dates contains all kinds of nutrients, minerals and fibre but when added with butter and consumed in excess, it can bring more harm than good.
“Butter is an animal fat that contains high levels of saturated fat. It is also high in calories,” said the post before explaining that one piece of butter-filled date is equivalent to a scoop of rice.
“If you want to eat it to try the taste, there’s no issue. But excessive consumption is not good for health.” PHM explained this is due to the high calorie intake which will lead to unhealthy weight gain.
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