diff --git a/lib/server/readMetadata.js b/lib/server/readMetadata.js
index 526e1229b1..226e2e1a4a 100644
--- a/lib/server/readMetadata.js
+++ b/lib/server/readMetadata.js
@@ -73,7 +73,7 @@ function readSidebar() {
 function splitHeader(content) {
   const lines = content.split("\n");
   if (lines[0] !== "---") {
-    return false;
+    return {};
   }
   let i = 1;
   for (; i < lines.length - 1; ++i) {
@@ -91,7 +91,7 @@ function splitHeader(content) {
 function extractMetadata(content) {
   const metadata = {};
   const both = splitHeader(content);
-  if (both === false) {
+  if (Object.keys(both).length === 0) {
     return { metadata, rawContent: content };
   }
   const lines = both.header.split("\n");