This is something that I mention often in my prenatal yoga classes:

Eating 6 dates daily for the last 4 weeks of your pregnancy can significantly reduce the chance of induction and augmentation, lessen laboring time and much more!

• Cervical dilation was significantly greater in the date-eating mamas upon arrival at the hospital

• 83% of mothers who consumed dates had their membranes intact upon admission at the hospital

• 96% of the women who ate dates went into labor on their own

• Use of Pitocin (synthetic Oxytocin) was significantly lower in women who consumed dates (28%), compared with the non-date fruit mothers (47%)

• The latent phase of the first stage of labor was almost 7 hours shorter in the date-eating mothers compared with the non-date fruit eaters (510 min vs 906 min)

Here are the studies and information to back me up on this….

Food for thought ~ literally 

http://thepeacefulbirthproject.org/2013/10/ancient-wisdom-and-research-agree-amazing-fruit-eases-labor-and-prevents-postpartum-hemorrhage/

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21280989