Let’s talk about kiwi; not the bird, the fruit.
Have you ever had kiwi fruits before? They are obviously not as common as many other fruits. Which is why you should make sure you take them as often as possible whenever they are available to you. They are filled with a lot of nutrients which offers a host of health benefits.
Nutritional Information of Kiwi
- Vitamin A
- Vitamin C
- Vitamin B
- Vitamin K
- Vitamin E
- Sugar
- Protein
- Calcium
- Iron
- Magnesium
- Potassium
- Copper
- Folic acid
- Manganese
- Carbohydrate
The nutrients contained in kiwi are present in different quantities. Reports have it that kiwi fruits are an excellent source of vitamins, especially vitamin C (ascorbic acid).
Health Benefits of Kiwi
Kiwi fruits are beneficial for medical conditions and better health. Here are some of the top benefits of kiwi.
1. Kiwi Helps to Create Acid Balance in the Body
Do you know that your blood should be slightly more on the alkaline side and not the acidic? This blood condition, known as acid balance, is to enable the body cells to function efficiently. However, the vast majority have blood pH that is more on the acidic side, which affects the functions of the cells and disrupts ideal health conditions.
Symptoms of acid imbalance include –
- Shortness of breath
- Lack of cognition
- Numbness and tingles
- Fatigue
- Vomiting, etc.
To make sure your blood pH level is balanced, eat fruits like kiwi and other more healthy and organic foods. Avoid any food that promotes acidity, especially processed foods. Kiwi is one of the most alkaline food there is.
2. Kiwi Promotes Digestion and Regular Bowel Movement
One of the benefits of kiwi is its ability to promote healthy digestion and promote intestinal health. This is not surprising because most fruits (if not all) are great for digestive health.
Kiwi fruits are rich in fiber, and they are recognized for their strong laxative properties as confirmed by controlled clinical studies. Another study conducted on kiwi reveals that it is rich in proteolytic enzyme actinidin. This enzyme improves the digestion of foods, especially protein.
3. Kiwi Promotes Skin Elasticity and Defence
Skin is an organ of the body that serves as the first line of defense in protecting us against the sun and other external risks we encounter every day. Not only does the skin take such a beating for the sake of our health, but it is also the largest organ in the whole body.
For the skin to actually do its job effectively, it needs to be taken care of. Caring for the skin largely depends on what you eat. If you eat a lot of skin-friendly foods like kiwi, the skin will maintain its radiance and keep up the good work of protecting your body from external risks that are dangerous to the health.
Kiwi contains quite a bunch of vitamins and minerals that help the skin to maintain its elasticity, glow, and general health. It protects the skin from rapid aging and skin infections.
4. Kiwi Improves Respiratory Health and Reduces the Symptoms of Asthma
Is asthma giving you such a tough time? Then you have to try kiwi.
Asthma becomes a big source of health concern only if you do not eat a healthy dose of vitamin C as often as possible. The same applies to other respiratory health issues. A lot of the diseases people suffer these days can be treated by making adjustments to one’s diet and eating healthy.
Kiwi contains bioflavonoids and other compounds that can reduce the frequency and severity of respiratory dysfunctions. These contents also help in protecting the respiratory system from any respiratory tract infection.
5. Kiwi Promotes Better Protein Digestion
You’ve probably heard it so many times in the past that protein is an essential part of every meal. It may even be more essential than carbs, especially if you’re trying to lose weight. What you may not know is that only a little amount of protein can be digested per time.
This makes it challenging to meet up with the daily protein requirement.
What’s more?
Protein needs to be broken down into amino acids before absorption, and sometimes, our bodies just cannot break down all the protein on its own. It needs help from foods and fruits that contain protease to help with the breakdown and facilitate absorption.
Kiwi contains a special type of protease known as Actinidia.
6. Kiwi Helps You Sleep Better
There is a content in kiwi known as serotonin. It is very effective in improving the quality of sleep in adults who may have sleeping disorders.
How many adults do you think to have sleeping disorders?
In the United States alone, more than 50 million American suffer from over 80 different sleeping disorders per year. There is also proof that another 20 to 30 million Americans suffer intermittent sleeping problems each year.
That’s a lot of people if you ask. But it does not have to be that way if we can just cut down how much-processed foods we take and eat more of organic foods and fruits; kiwi included. Aside from improving sleep quality, kiwi also helps to induce sleep and reduce waking time after the onset.
7. Kiwi is Great For Pregnant Women
One of the most effective contents of kiwi is folate and folate is very crucial for pregnant women, children, as well as breastfeeding mothers. Actually, folate is good for everyone.
As far as pregnancy goes, folate contributes notably to the prevention of neural tube defect in unborn babies. What that actually means is that folate protects the unborn baby from birth defects that are dangerous to the brain and spinal cord. Neural tube defect is very scary because it can happen in the first month of pregnancy; even before the woman confirms that she’s pregnant.
So you see why folate is important even before pregnancy?
8. Kiwi Regulates Blood Pressure
Eating a lot of kiwis can reduce blood pressure and other diseases related to it, thanks to the bioactive compounds it contains. These bioactive compounds put the pressure of the blood in check and help the heart pump blood around the body.
One of the many causes of high blood pressure is altered electrolyte levels; increased sodium and depleted potassium level. Both potassium and sodium may be very important to the body, but the body only needs them in certain quantities/ratio. Anything more than, or less than the required ratio leads to medical concerns like high blood pressure and cardiac arrest.
Kiwi contains a healthy dose of potassium that helps correct salt imbalance in the body and maintains healthy blood pressure. Potassium also has a regulatory role in the contraction of the heart which can indirectly affect blood pressure.
It is important to note that potassium and sodium are needed in a certain quantity in the human body. Anything other than that can lead to cardiac dysfunction.
9. Kiwi Boost the Immune System
You might be as healthy as a horse, but you need to take preventive measures to maintain your good health. If you don’t take such measures, your health will gradually deplete. This means that your immune system will function less effectively and before you know it, you’re suffering from one disease or the other.
Eating fruits like kiwi (and other healthy organic foods) can help you boost your immune system and maintain good health. Kiwi is very rich in vitamin C, which is very essential when it comes to immune system protection.
Kiwi also comes handy for people that may be going through some health challenges or recuperating from sickness. The fruit will help to boost their immunity to disease and hasten their recovery.
10. Kiwi is Good for Sight
Sight impairment will not be such a problem today if people would eat a lot of sight friendly foods like kiwi. Eating these fruits may not totally prevent sight issues, but research has proven that they can reduce macular degeneration by 36%.
The nutrients found in kiwi contributes in one way or the other towards vision promotion; especially lutein and zeaxanthin. These nutrients, along with vitamin A, play the prominent roles in protecting the eyes.
Eating a notable amount of kiwi often can reduce the occurrence of diseases like cataract, glaucoma, and other age-related macular degeneration.
There are many other known and unknown benefits of kiwi that we are not able to cover in this list. Making kiwi a part of your diet offers a lot more than you can imagine.
Do not forget that moderation is always key. While it is a good thing to eat a lot of kiwis as often as possible, it is also important to eat them in moderation.
