Let the numbers talk: one Medjool date (24 g, pitted) has about 66 kcal, 18 g of carbohydrate and 1.6 g of fibre. Plain dates have no added sugar, but they do have natural sugar, so how many matters: 3 dates come to about 199 kcal.

The numbers for the varieties in our table are close: in the Qassim University study their natural sugars ran from 64.4 to 74.02 g per 100 g and their glycaemic index from 43.4 to 55.9, with no statistically significant difference in GI between varieties. So pick the taste you love, and keep it plain.

Simplest: a date or two, plain. Want something more filling? From Tamra's recipes: PB & Chocolate Stuffed Dates (≈156 kcal, 3 g protein per date); Date Caramel Rice Cakes (≈140 kcal, 1.9 g protein per rice cake); Ride Fuel: Dates in Your Pocket (≈66 kcal, 0.4 g protein per date); Date Energy Bites (≈77 kcal, 1.6 g protein per bite); Date Shake (≈516 kcal, 14 g protein per glass); Chocolate Date Mousse (≈307 kcal, 30 g protein per cup). The numbers are approximate, worked out from USDA figures.

No, dates contain natural sugar: Medjool has 66.5 g of sugars per 100 g, about 16 g a date, and the Saudi varieties in our table measured 64.4 to 74.02 g per 100 g in the Qassim University study. What plain dates don't have is added sugar: their sugar is the fruit's own. Stuffed or chocolate-coated dates are a different story, so check their ingredients.

It depends on how many, and on the rest of what you eat. One Medjool date is about 66 kcal; 3 come to about 199 kcal and 54 g of carbohydrate, with 4.8 g of fibre. Count them in your day's calories. And we won't promise weight loss: the numbers are here, the call is yours and your dietitian's.

That's your doctor's call. What we have is the numbers: the Qassim University study measured the glycaemic index in healthy volunteers: Sukkari 43.4, Sagai 44.6, Wanana 50.9, Medjool 55.3, Madinah Ajwa 55.9, with no statistically significant difference between varieties. The study wasn't in people with diabetes, so ask your doctor or dietitian whether dates suit you, and how many.

The Qassim University study counted 3 average-sized dates as one serving. Medjool is a big date (24 g, pitted): 3 of them come to about 199 kcal. How many servings suit your day depends on everything else you eat; ask a dietitian.

In the Qassim University study, of the Saudi varieties in our table, Sukkari measured the least sugar (64.4 g per 100 g) and Wanana the most (74.02). Taste can fool you: Ajwa tastes less sweet, but measured 71.29 g, more than Sukkari.

Plain dates that travel in your bag, like our Pitted Sukkari, wrapped, or our date energy bites: about 77 kcal and 1.6 g of protein a bite.