date juice
{{Short description|Drink}}
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File:Collecting Date Juice.jpg
Date palm juice or Date palm sap or Khejur Ras ({{langx|bn|খেজুর রস|Khejur Rosh}}) is sweet sap extracted from the Date Palm trees of Bengal in winter. It contains high natural sugars and various nutrients. The sap is usually collected early in the morning in containers and consumed fresh, often within hours of collection to preserve its natural sweetness and delicate flavor. It is a habitat of a diverse range of microbial species mostly lactic acid bacteria such as Leuconostoc and Lactobacillus which are usually known as beneficial microbes.{{cite journal | vauthors = Hossain TJ, Shahadat H, Nafiz IH, Islam R, Khan MK, Alhumaidan OS | title = Metagenomic analysis of bacterial diversity and community in date palm sap: Dominance of Leuconostoc, Zymomonas, and Lactobacillus | date = June 2023 | url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/374847292}}
Bangladesh produces around 20,000 tonnes of date molasses in each year.{{Cite web |last=Admin |first=Mr |date=2021-12-19 |title=Production of Molasses with Date Juice: Many rural people find source of livelihood |url=https://banglamirrornews.com/2021/12/19/production-of-molasses-with-date-juice-many-rural-people-find-source-of-livelihood/ |access-date=2022-05-16 |website=Weekly Bangla Mirror {{!}} |language=en-US}} And Kalkini Upazila region in Bangladesh, is mostly famous for its Date Juice and Date Molasses/Gur.
Role as a potential source of Nipah virus
Raw date palm sap has been implicated in the transmission of Nipah virus in parts of South Asia, particularly Bangladesh and India. Fruit bats of the genus Pteropus, the natural reservoirs of the virus, are known to visit date palm trees to feed on the sap. During this process, they may contaminate the sap with saliva, urine, or feces, introducing the virus into the collection pots.Luby, S. P., et al. (2006). "Foodborne transmission of Nipah virus, Bangladesh." Emerging Infectious Diseases, 12(12), 1888–1894.
Several outbreaks of Nipah virus have been epidemiologically linked to the consumption of fresh, raw date palm juice. The risk is heightened during the harvesting season, when sap is collected and consumed without boiling or processing.Gurley, E. S., et al. (2007). "Person-to-person transmission of Nipah virus in a Bangladeshi community." Emerging Infectious Diseases, 13(7), 1031–1037.
Preventive measures—such as covering sap collection sites with bamboo skirts to block bat access—have been promoted as effective interventions.Nahar, N., et al. (2010). "A pilot study of the use of indigenous methods to prevent Nipah virus infection by interrupting bat access to date palm sap in Bangladesh." Health Promotion International, 25(4), 440–447. Public health authorities also recommend boiling sap before consumption or avoiding raw sap altogether to minimize infection risks.
References
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{{Bangladeshi dishes}}
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