Why you should be including kiwis in your DAILY diet
KIWI science explained
Lately we have been reading and hearing the term “superfoods” more and more often. Most of the foods from this category tend to be sometimes really expensive and hard to find, not talking that they are also not the most delicious foods, which make them not maintainable in our diet at all.
Today we will be talking about the kiwifruit, which, it is safe to say, is probably the most underrated fruit out there. Some of the researchers and other nutritionist also refer to this fruit as “the real superfood”. So here are top 5 reasons why you should include kiwis more often in your diet.
- High amount of vitamin C,E,K and Folate
Kiwis are uncommonly high in vitamin C, containing two times the vitamin C found in oranges. A 2014 review (1) boasts kiwi fruit as a daily prescription for health.
The same review shows that kiwi beats apple, orange, banana, strawberries and blueberries when it comes to total fiber content, vitamin C, vitamin E and Vitamin K (Richardson D, 2018) (1).
- Good benefit for the cardiovascular system and therefore the blood pressure
It is shown that kiwifruit, as part of a healthy diet, may increase high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and decrease triglycerides and elevated blood pressure (Richardson D, 2018)
It contains a decent amount of folate potassium which are also helpful fighting those conditions.
- Kiwifruit supports immune function and has antioxidative benefits
Kiwi is shown to be a rich source of antioxidants, which may protect the body from endogenous oxidative damage.
Kiwis also enhanced immunity reducing risk of cold or flu-like illness more beneficial than supplementation of vitamin C alone (Richardson D, 2018).
- Kiwis can improve your sleep quality
Some studies show that consuming two kiwifruits one hour before going to bed can definitely improve sleep onset, sleep duration and sleep quality in adults with self-reported sleep disturbances . In a 4-week study participants, who had a pre sleep kiwi-snack fell asleep 42% more quickly than those who did not consume any kiwi before sleep (Lin H, 2011). The effects of kiwis on sleep are attributed to serotonin. This is a hormone, that helps you regulate your sleep cycle.
- Kiwis can improve your iron status
The research shows that high levels of Vitamin C in kiwifruit can improve iron bioavailability. A study with a 89 healthy women shows that individuals with low iron status can improve their iron levels by eating kiwifruit with an iron-fortified breakfast cereal (Beck K, 2011)
Unfortunately 1-2% of the population are allergic to kiwifruit, so I suggest you to be aware of the early symptoms and be careful to avoid the fruit if you are found to be allergic.
But despite this fact I encourage the rest of you to try eat at least one Kiwi a day for overall health benefits.