Gold kiwifruit can help clear some symptoms of the common cold, new research suggests.
In healthy people aged over 65, eating the exotic fruit has been shown to significantly reduce the severity of cold symptoms such as sore throats and head congestion.
The study of 37 healthy older people by New Zealand’s Plant & Food Research found kiwifruit also speeds up the time it takes the body to rid itself of the symptoms.
Dr Denise Hunter, one of the researchers involved in the study, said: “This study shows the micronutrients provided by regular eating of gold kiwifruit appear to be important in reducing symptoms of colds and other respiratory infections.
“While we do not know what compounds produce these results, these findings suggest that eating gold kiwifruit on a regular basis throughout the winter period may reduce the severity of some cold symptoms.”
The study shows eating certain fruits can have measurable effects on the health and wellbeing of an individual, Dr Kieran Elborough, general manager of science, food innovation at Plant & Food research said.
“This research demonstrates that gold kiwifruit are a functional whole food, providing a level of protection against the symptoms of cold and flu. This supports our ongoing research into functional foods from fruits or vegetables that enhance the wellness of individuals, either as whole foods or as functional ingredients.”
Participants were asked to eat Zespri Gold kiwifruit daily for four weeks then switch to banana with a four week kiwifruit or banana-free period before each treatment period.
The results showed a reduction in self-reported flu symptoms with gold kiwifruit compared to banana. Sore throat symptoms reduced from 5.4 to two days and head congestion from 4.7 to 0.9 days.
Head congestion symptoms were also reported to be less severe during the gold kiwifruit period.
The research was funded by Zespri international and was conducted in association with the Institute of Food, Nutrition and Human Health at Massey University.
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