Why the kiwi fruit is a must-eat during rainy season
Why the kiwifruit is a must-eat during rainy season
First a disclaimer, my son is a huge fan of the kiwi fruit.
He is a fruit child, thankfully, loves to eat them, so that was one less battle for me to fight while bringing him up. But somehow he has always been partial to kiwis. Maybe thats to do with the fact that this vibrant green fruit specked with little black seeds is indeed pretty. But whatever the genesis, he digs them unconditionally, and its via him that I too began having more of this quaint, juicy, exotic fruit. And thanks to its interesting taste – a heady mix of strawberries, melons and bananas, I too soon fell in love. So I must thank my son for this.
This is the season for flu and myriad infections and kiwi helps as it is a vitamin C heavyweight. One fruit can almost meet your entire daily requirement of C (deliver 64 mg; compare that to an orange, 70 grams provides 37 mg)).
Lately, it has been in news due to the observed benefits it delivers for battling dengue. And dengue season, if we go by the past few years timings, is almost on to us (usually June to September). During dengue bringing up platelets is of paramount concern, so foods that are easy to digest, pleasing to the palate and rich in antioxidants fit the bill. Kiwi ticks all these factors easily.
In addition, it is also loaded with immunity boosting Vitamin C and electrolyte balancer potassium, which again makes it an ideal food to eat during dengue. Vitamin C actually helps our platelets group together and function better. This vitamin also helps us absorb iron more efficiently from the food we eat, which may again be positive for our platelet counts. Plus it is also known that deficiency of folate in the body may lead to a lower blood platelet count. That is why adding more vitamin B9 or folate rich kiwi can help increase blood platelet count.
Of course, even though we need more reports and studies to be able to say conclusively how and how much it helps, for now kiwi definitely seems to a winner as far as dengue is concerned.
There are lots of other benefits that C delivers. Besides being a big immunity booster, this vitamin also helps up the fertility as it appears to keep sperm from clumping together, making them more motile. What’s more, its perfect to beat the seasonal blues as well, as enough C is vital for the production of serotonin, the feel good hormone. Kiwi is, to put it, simply a very happy fruit.
To top it, it’s low in calories. This exotic and extremely nutrient dense fruit (you get more vitamins and minerals per gram and less calories than any other fruit — about 70gm gives only 40 calories with 2gm fibre.
What’s even better news is that this fuzzy fruit is an effective natural remedy for constipation (a common problem during the rainy season) as both adequate amounts of C and fibre in it help it function as a natural laxative.
It is sky-high in both soluble and insoluble fibre, both of which are essential for promoting heart health, regulating digestion, and lowering cholesterol levels — that’s a winning trifecta. A little dossier about both these types of fibre is important here: soluble fibre dissolves in water in the intestines to form a gel-like substance that helps reduce the level of sugar, total cholesterol and bad cholesterol in your blood. The insoluble fibre provides bulk to your stools, reducing your risk of chronic digestive disorders, such as constipation and hemorrhoids. So kiwi delivers on both counts.
Kiwi has moderate to low glycemic index of 52, meaning that this fruity, green gem does not rapidly raise blood glucose levels — great news for individuals suffering from diabetes and those looking to keep it at bay.
Another factor that makes it amazing for todays times is that it is a friend of our respiratory system. It helps prevent asthma and studies show that more kiwis children consume, less likely they are to have respiratory-related health problems (like wheezing, shortness of breath, or night coughing). Of course it helps adults too similarly.
If you are an insomniac then too kiwi can come to your aid. Possibly the effect comes from kiwis high levels of antioxidants and serotonin, which helps regulate the body’s internal clock.There’s double benefit here as adequate shut-eye has long been linked to a leaner midsection. And who doesn’t want that!
Enough reasons to include kiwi fruit in our diet regularly, I say, particularly now when the rains are lashing down and myriad infections are staring us in the face.