Kiwi fruits’ brown, fuzzy exterior is deceptive.  It may not look like much of health food or even that appetizing.  But once you slice into one, its bright lime green interior dotted with black seeds in an oval pattern tells another story.

Originating in China and known there as Yang Tao, it was introduced by missionaries in New Zealand and didn’t make it to the United States until the late 1960s.   If it wasn’t for honoring this fruit after New Zealand’s native bird – the kiwi – kiwi fruit may still be better known by what its original name was – the Chinese gooseberry.

Bursting with important nutrients

It’s easy to overlook kiwi fruit at the grocery store.  It doesn’t catch your eye like brightly colored peppers or ruby red apples.  But make no mistake, this small but mighty fruit is a nutritional winner.  One sliced kiwi fruit provides the following:

Calories – 46

Fiber – 2.3 grams

Potassium – 237 milligrams

Vitamin C – 70 milligrams

Kiwi fruit surpass oranges when it comes to vitamin C content – they have five times or 273% of the daily recommended amount of vitamin C than what an orange provides.  Kiwis also are rich in vitamin A, K, E and B6, folate, and copper.  Basically, kiwi fruit has been found to pack more nutrients per ounce than 27 other commonly consumed fruits, including oranges, apples, and bananas. 

Kiwi fruit can come in either green or gold varieties with both being nutritionally comparable.

Kiwi fruits role in disease prevention

Kiwi fruit appears to be an active participant in relieving symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).  A study found that colon transit time significantly decreased in individuals consuming kiwi fruit helping improve bowel function in adults with IBS. 

Children suffering from asthma may want to add kiwi fruit several times a week to help reduce wheezing.  A study found that when children ate six to seven servings of kiwi along with other vitamin C rich foods each week, they had a 44% lower incidence of wheezing and other respiratory difficulties.

A 2011 study found that kiwi fruit had strong anti-oxidant effects and may prevent the development and deterioration of disease caused by oxidative stress with the gold kiwi fruit having the strongest effect. 

Gold kiwi fruit is a rich supply of folate, the B-vitamin known for preventing neural tube defects in unborn babies.  It contains 63 milligrams per kiwi or about 30 percent more than the green kiwi. 

Buy a bag of kiwis today

Knowing the health advantages that kiwi fruit provides should make you want to stock up on this delightful fruit to help diversify your diet with its color, flavor and nutritional value.  To help ripen kiwis, place them in a brown paper bag for four to six days – place an apple, banana, or pear with them to speed up the ripening process.