Balanites aegyptiaca (also known as the Egyptian balsam and Lalob in Sudan[3]) is a species of tree, classified as a member of either the Zygophyllaceae or the Balanitaceae.

The dark green compound leaves grow out of the base of the spines[7] and are made up of two leaflets which are variable in size and shape.

[2] It can be found in many kinds of habitat, tolerating a wide variety of soil types, from sand to heavy clay, and climatic moisture levels, from arid to subhumid.

[11] Balanites aegyptiaca has been cultivated in Egypt for more than 4000 years, and stones placed in tombs as votive offerings have been found as far back as the Twelfth Dynasty.

[14] Desert date fruit is mixed into porridge and eaten by nursing mothers, and the oil is consumed for headache and to improve lactation.

[6] Bark extracts and the fruit repel,[15] or destroy,[7] freshwater snails and copepods, organisms that act as intermediary hosts of parasites including Schistosoma, Bilharzia, and guinea worm.

[7] The antigiardial (combating Giardia parasites), antiamoebic, antimicrobial, antioxidant activity and cytotoxicity of the fruits extract has been studied.

[citation needed] The seed contains 30-48% fixed (non-volatile) oil, like the leaves, fruit pulp, bark and roots, and contains the sapogenins diosgenin and yamogenin.

[9] The bark yields fibers, the natural gums from the branches are used as glue, and the seeds have been used to make jewelry and beads.

[16] The generic part of the binomial Balanites derives from the Greek word for an acorn and refers to the fruit, this name was coined by Alire Delile in 1813.