A Kiwi a Day

Research team presents the cardiac benefits of New Zealand's national fruit.

A research team at Oslo University Hospital has found that consuming kiwis may lower blood pressure. The group conducted a small study of men and women with mild hypertension and asked them to eat either 3 kiwis a day or one apple (hey, kiwis are smaller!) a day for two months. When their daily blood pressure readings were taken, the researchers found those eating kiwis had 3.6 systolic points lower blood pressure than the apple-eating control group. The team thinks the result may be similar to the effect of eating dark leafy greens which, like kiwis, contain the carotenoid and antioxidant lutein.