Date Syrup Has Antibacterial Compounds That Are More Effective Than Honey

If someone told you a sticky, sweet syrup from the Middle East could take down E. coli and Staph infections faster than manuka honey, would you believe them?

Well, you should.

A growing body of research suggests that date syrup—yes, the same rich, dark liquid that’s drizzled over desserts and meats in traditional Iraqi and Middle Eastern cooking—may be one of the most overlooked antibacterial agents hiding in your kitchen cabinet.

And in an age where antibiotics are increasingly struggling to keep up with drug-resistant bacteria, that’s not just sweet—it’s vital.

At Cardiff Metropolitan University, researcher Hajer Taleb set out to test whether the syrup made from dates grown in Basra, Iraq, could do more than flavor food.

What he found was startling: within just six hours, the natural syrup began killing off colonies of harmful bacteria, including the notorious Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli, both of which are common culprits behind wound infections, food poisoning, and serious illness.

What makes this discovery especially potent is that date syrup outpaced manuka honey, which has long been the gold standard in nature-based antibacterial treatments.

When Sweetness Fights Bacteria

Let’s step back and look at why this works.

Date syrup is made by slowly boiling dates until their sugars and juices are concentrated into a thick, dark molasses-like liquid.

But the real magic isn’t the sugar—it’s the polyphenols.

Polyphenols are naturally occurring compounds in plants that serve multiple purposes: flavor, color, antioxidant protection, and, as it turns out, bacterial resistance.

Similar polyphenols are found in red wine, dark chocolate, and green tea, but dates pack them in at remarkable concentrations, especially as they ripen under hot desert sun.

Taleb’s lab tests found that date syrup’s antibacterial action comes from these phenolic compounds, not just the sugar content.

This is crucial because artificial syrups—those sweet imitations made from sugar alone—had no such effect.

The bacteria grew as if nothing had changed.

This specificity points to a deeper truth about how whole foods behave in biological systems: nature builds complexity into its molecules, and that complexity matters.

How Fast Does It Work? Faster Than Honey.

You’ve probably heard of manuka honey, the famed export from New Zealand that’s been shown to kill a wide range of bacteria, even those resistant to antibiotics.

It’s a staple in some hospitals for wound care and burn treatments.

But Taleb’s research suggests that date syrup can achieve comparable, if not better, results—and faster.

In his trials, bacterial colonies began to die off within six hours of exposure to the syrup. Compare that to manuka honey, which often requires longer exposure to reach similar results.

“While this work is currently in vitro, it suggests that date syrup could exhibit health benefits through its antibacterial activities, similar, or in some cases, better than honey,” said Ara Kanekanian, a food technology expert and Taleb’s supervisor at Cardiff Met.

A Kitchen Ingredient With Clinical Potential

Now here’s where things get truly interesting.

Because the research is still in its early stages—these are lab tests, not clinical trials on humans yet—we’re not seeing date syrup on hospital shelves just yet. But the implications are significant.

If further research supports these findings, date syrup could become a clinical tool, much like honey:

Topical disinfectants for wounds and burns
Natural preservatives in pharmaceuticals and foods
Synergistic agents used alongside antibiotics to increase their effectiveness

It’s not hard to imagine a future where a sterile gauze pad infused with natural date syrup becomes standard protocol for treating skin infections.

And unlike synthetic antibiotics, bacteria are far less likely to develop resistance to such a multifaceted natural compound.

Wait, Isn’t Sugar Supposed to Feed Bacteria?

Here’s where we flip the script.

You’ve probably been told that sugar is bad for infections.

It feeds bacteria, right? It makes wounds worse, not better.

But that’s only part of the picture.

While refined sugar can exacerbate infections, the sugars in whole foods—especially when paired with bioactive compounds like phenolics—don’t behave the same way.

In fact, these compounds can interfere with bacterial communication, disrupt biofilm formation, and create hostile environments for microbial growth.

This isn’t just theoretical.

In Taleb’s experiment, date syrup didn’t just inhibit growth—it actively killed pathogens.

And when he removed the phenolic compounds, leaving behind only sugars? The bacteria returned.

This flies in the face of conventional wisdom.

We’ve long assumed that sweet substances equal danger in medical settings, but when nature packages sugar with chemical defense systems, the rules change.

The Antibacterial Arsenal in History’s Pantry

It turns out date syrup isn’t the only ancient remedy getting a modern upgrade.

At the same UK microbiology conference where Taleb presented his findings, another research team made headlines by reviving a 9th-century Anglo-Saxon potion—a blend of onion, garlic, wine, and cow stomach lining—and testing it against antibiotic-resistant Staph bacteria.

The result? It wiped out 90% of the bacterial colonies.

These aren’t flukes.

Increasingly, science is turning to historic remedies and traditional medicines in search of new tools to fight the global antibiotic resistance crisis.

As synthetic drugs lose effectiveness, the spotlight is shifting back to natural antimicrobials that bacteria haven’t adapted to yet.

And while garlic potions may not be your cup of tea, date syrup’s taste and shelf stability make it a compelling candidate for real-world applications.

Could Date Syrup Save Lives?

That’s not just clickbait—it’s a genuine scientific question now.

If Taleb and Kanekanian’s research continues to show promise, date syrup could help reduce hospital-acquired infections, cut down on antibiotic overuse, and offer affordable treatment options in low-resource settings where antibiotics are scarce or unreliable.

The Middle East, where dates have been a dietary staple for thousands of years, may end up exporting not just fruit, but medicine.

And for everyday people?

This might just be the sign you needed to start swapping out refined sugars and synthetic syrups for something that tastes great and fights microbes.

How to Choose and Use Date Syrup

Before you run to the grocery store, a word of caution: not all date syrups are created equal.

To tap into the benefits mentioned in the study:

Look for pure, whole-fruit date syrup, not one made from concentrates or artificial flavorings.
Origin matters—the syrup tested in the study came from Basra, Iraq, where dates grow in intense heat, which boosts phenolic compound production.
Avoid added sugar—extra fructose or corn syrup dilutes the medicinal power.

And no, this isn’t a license to guzzle the stuff.

But incorporating it into your diet—a spoon in your tea, a drizzle on oatmeal, or a base for a marinade—may offer more than just a sweet kick.

Food as Medicine

This isn’t about magical cures. It’s about respecting the biochemical sophistication of real food.

For decades, the trend in medicine has been to isolate, synthesize, and replicate active ingredients. But nature doesn’t work in silos.

A fruit like a date evolved not just to feed mammals and birds, but to survive microbial attack—and it developed complex defenses to do that.

What Taleb’s research shows us is that we’ve only scratched the surface of what traditional ingredients can do.

And as our medical systems face growing challenges—antibiotic resistance, supply chain issues, rising costs—it may be the ingredients that have always been with us that provide the next breakthroughs.

So next time you stir a spoonful of that sticky, rich syrup into your recipe, remember: you might be feeding more than your body—you might be fueling a new wave of science.