New Zealand scientists have found that eating two kiwifruit a day brings benefits to muscle health.

The findings of a study by the University of Otago in Christchurch, have been published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

The researchers, led by Professor Margreet Vissers at the university’s Centre for Free Radical Research, used kiwifruit as the vitamin C source in a human clinical research project.

The aim of the study was to understand the critical role of the vitamin in the human body and to determine the best way to obtain this from the diet. The findings into muscle health are one aspect of the project into kiwifruit, which is one of the most nutrition-dense fruits and high in vitamin C.

The latest work also found that skeletal muscle is the body’s most labile, and possibly the largest, store of vitamin C, and that muscle levels most accurately reflect vitamin C intake. To reach the optimal vitamin C levels in muscle, which will result in good energy and vitality, dietary intake should also be optimal. If intake drops, then so will muscle levels, as vitamin C cannot be stored for use later.

Vissers said that while most people associate a lack of vitamin C with scurvy, this condition reflects extreme deprivation and there are a host of illnesses and conditions which can befall the human body if vitamin C is continually below optimal levels.

Late in 2012, Vissers urged consumers to ensure a kiwifruit was part of their 5 A Day fruit and vegetable allowance.

She said: “Not all fruit are created equal, and, surprisingly, most fruit contain only one tenth of a healthy daily vitamin C intake per serving. However, we have shown that the addition of two kiwifruit a day will deliver optimal vitamin C and meet your daily recommended dose of this important vitamin, as well as delivering other vital nutrients.”

For this reason, fresh fruit is considered to be far more beneficial than a supplement.

Zespri technical health advisor Lynley Drummond added: “These results further build the growing body of evidence for the role of kiwifruit in the diet to maintain optimal health, performance and vitality.”