Do dates make you poop?
Eventually, if you eat them daily. Dates won't send you running after one snack. Eaten every day, their fiber adds up: in a small study, 7 dates a day for 3 weeks meant more frequent bowel movements.
Did dates make you go?
The meter says what should happen. Your bowels get a vote too.
Why it works
Fiber that builds up
Two Medjool dates have about 3.2 g of fiber. Fiber bulks stool up and helps it hold water, but it works over days, not hours.
A small study backs it
In a study of 22 healthy volunteers, eating 7 dates (about 50 g) a day for 21 days made bowel movements noticeably more frequent.
Sweet, so go easy
Those two dates also carry about 32 g of sugar. They count toward the 22 to 34 g of fiber adults need daily, but they're not a free snack.
Sources: Eid et al., Br J Nutr 2015; NIDDK, Eating, diet & nutrition for constipation; USDA FoodData Central.