Kiwifruit: Nutrients, What Research Shows and Safety

Kiwifruit is the fruit of Actinidia deliciosa (green kiwifruit), a woody vine in the family Actinidiaceae. The soft flesh and small seeds are eaten, often scooped from the halved fruit. People eat it mainly for its vitamin C and fiber and, more recently, for bowel comfort. This page keeps the whole fruit apart from extracts and supplements, and apart from hype.

Read this first

• Kiwifruit can cause allergic reactions, from an itchy mouth to, rarely, a life-threatening reaction. [12] For trouble breathing or swelling of the face or throat, call 911. See food allergy basics and emergency signs.
• People with a natural rubber latex allergy may react to kiwi, banana, avocado and chestnut ("latex-fruit syndrome"). [13]
• One cup of sliced kiwifruit has more than the whole day's Daily Value of vitamin C (USDA). [1] Eating it can help cover vitamin C needs; it is not proof that it prevents colds or other illness.
• The best-studied use is constipation, with low-certainty evidence from small trials. [3] Evidence for sleep, blood pressure and cholesterol is thin or mixed.

What is in it (USDA values)

Green kiwifruit, raw (USDA FoodData Central 168153). [1] Serving: 1 cup, sliced (180 g). One whole fruit (2 inch diameter) is 69 g. Per-serving numbers are the USDA per-100 g value multiplied by 1.8 and rounded.

% Daily Value uses the FDA 2016 Daily Values; values vary with variety, ripeness and storage.

USDA also lists lutein plus zeaxanthin (122 mcg per 100 g) and beta-carotene (52 mcg per 100 g), plant pigments. [1] A review notes the fruit also has a protein-digesting enzyme called actinidin, and that its fiber holds water; these are proposed explanations for its effects on the gut, and the review is not a trial itself. [14] Evidence on these compounds in this page comes from lab and mechanism work plus the human trials below.

What research says

Eaten as food vs taken as a supplement or extract. Some constipation trials used encapsulated kiwifruit extract rather than fruit. [3] The meta-analysis noted extracts may cause more minor side effects than placebo, though the numbers were small and uncertain. [3] Results for capsules do not automatically apply to the fruit, and the reverse. Observational studies of fruit intake in general are not specific to kiwifruit and cannot prove cause.

How much is a normal serving

The USDA household portions for green kiwifruit are 1 cup sliced (180 g), 1 fruit (69 g) and 1 NLEA label serving (148 g). [1] This is information, not a prescription. We could not read the MyPlate page for an official daily fruit figure, so we do not quote one. Trials above used 2 to 3 whole fruit a day. [4][5][9] Fresh, frozen, canned or dried kiwifruit may differ in sugar and vitamin content: Proper evidence not found in the sources we read. See fresh, frozen and canned produce.

Safety, allergy and medicines

• Allergy. Kiwifruit is described as one of the more common causes of food allergy worldwide. Symptoms range from oral allergy syndrome (itchy mouth and throat) to anaphylaxis. Thirteen allergens have been identified in green kiwifruit. [12] Seek emergency help for breathing trouble or swelling of the face or throat. See anaphylaxis and severe allergic reactions.
• Latex allergy. Natural rubber latex proteins cross-react with some plant foods, most often banana, avocado, kiwi and chestnut. [13] People with a latex allergy should ask an allergy specialist about kiwifruit.
• Raw fruit and enzymes. Some kiwifruit allergens change with heat or strong acid, per a review; that does not make cooked kiwi safe for someone who is allergic. [12]
• Vitamin K and warfarin. Kiwifruit has vitamin K (USDA: 40.3 mcg per 100 g). [1] We did not read a source about kiwifruit and warfarin specifically, so we make no claim; people on warfarin should ask a clinician or pharmacist. See foods and medicine interactions.
• Potassium. A cup has about 12% of the potassium Daily Value. [1] People with kidney disease or on certain blood pressure medicines should ask about potassium-rich foods; see kidney disease, potassium and oxalates. We did not read a kiwifruit-specific source for this.
• Sugar. About 16 g of sugars per cup (USDA). [1] People managing diabetes can count it with other fruit.
• Vitamin C from food. NHS says doses above 1,000 mg a day from supplements can cause stomach pain and diarrhoea; this is about supplements, not fruit. [2]
• Pregnancy. We found no kiwifruit-specific warning in the sources we read. See foods in pregnancy.

Choosing, storing and food safety

• Choose fruit that is not bruised or damaged. [15]
• Rinse produce under running water, without soap or produce wash, and dry it. If you eat the skin, scrub it with a clean brush. [15] (The trials above used peeled fruit; skin eating is not studied here.)
• Keep cut fruit refrigerated. [15]

Related pages

• Fresh, frozen and canned produce
• Fruit juice vs whole fruit
• Food allergy basics and emergency signs
• Foods and medicine interactions: vitamin K, grapefruit and others
• Foods for gut health and bloating
• Herbs for constipation and bowel regularity