The Fruit That Fights the Blues

by Rachael Schultz    August 5, 2013

Consider kiwi.

Treat the blues with some green: Men who ate two kiwis a day for 6 weeks saw a significant improvement in depression and anxiety, as well as more energy and vigor, reports new research in the Journal of Nutritional Science.

In the study, guys who ate half a kiwi a day, and men who reported a positive outlook to start, saw no benefit from the kiwis.

“We suspect the effect is primarily due to the vitamin C in kiwifruit,” says study author Anitra Carr, Ph.D. “[Vitamin C] was the only micronutrient that varied significantly between the low fruit group and the high fruit group.”




Vitamin C helps produces a number of enzymes in the body that in turn produce metabolic energy in your cells, Carr explains. This means taking in more vitamin C could decrease feelings of fatigue and increase physical and mental energy.

If you’re feeling down, eating one kiwi in the morning and another in the evening can maximize vitamin C’s effects and increase your energy within the first week. But if you’re not crazy about kiwis—or fruit in general—take a multivitamin that’s high in C.


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