Kiwifruit helps relieve chronic constipation

  Kiwifruit (scientific name: Actinidiachinensis), is the name given to the fruit of the Chinese kiwifruit cultivar. It is also known as kiwi pear, vine pear, sheep peach, yang peach, kiwi fruit, muzi & mao muzi fruit, etc. It is native to southern China. It is generally oval in shape. The dark brown and hairy skin is generally inedible, while inside is a bright green flesh and a row of black seeds. Kiwis have a soft texture and a flavor sometimes described as a mixture of strawberry, banana, and pineapple. It is named kiwi because of its popularity with kiwi monkeys; it is also said to be named because of its hairy skin, which resembles a kiwi monkey.  Studies have shown that after eating 2 to 3 kiwis a day for 4 weeks, 54% of patients with chronic constipation experienced significant relief, faster bowel movements, and a corresponding reduction in laxative use.  The subjects in this study ranged in age from 36 to 65 years old, and the experiment lasted 6 weeks. The study found that the number of bowel movements improved from an average of 2.2 to 4.4 per week.  Unhealthy dietary structure and habits, stress, and laxative abuse can all trigger chronic constipation. Increasing the intake of dietary fiber and eating more foods containing coarse fiber, such as grains and cereals, vegetables and fruits, can stimulate intestinal peristalsis and promote bowel movement. Kiwifruit is rich in dietary fiber, containing 3.4 grams per 100 grams; bananas, which are commonly used by many people when they are constipated, contain only about 1.6 grams.  According to Chinese medicine, kiwifruit has the effect of moistening the dryness, regulating the middle and lowering the Qi, nourishing and strengthening the body. According to modern nutritional research, kiwifruit is not only rich in fiber and vitamin C, but also contains nutrients such as folic acid and carotene, which are rarely found in other fruits. In addition, kiwi juice has a blocking effect on the synthesis of the amine group of carcinogenic substances – nitrosamines. In some cancer hospitals, the use of internal “kiwi juice” in conjunction with radiation therapy has increased the appetite of patients; the decrease in hematocrit and leukocytes has been reduced to varying degrees compared to patients treated with radiation therapy without kiwi juice, and the digestive side effects have been reduced.