Kiwifruit, or Chinese Gooseberries, are sometimes seen as New Zealand’s “national fruit’, but the first seeds actually only arrived on NZ soils in 1904! After the fruit had gained much popularity, in 1959 Turners and Growers announced that it would from now on export Chinese gooseberries under the name 'kiwifruit' - and so our national fruit was born.

In spite of name confusion, these little green fruit have an array of health benefits. Here are just 5 of them…

Everyone is talking about cleansing and detoxing, and while it might seem like the hottest thing to do, your body has actually been carrying out this essential function since the minute you were born.

Our bodies remove toxins every day - eliminating and counteracting toxins through our colon, liver, kidneys, lungs, lymph and skin.

However, nowadays we're exposed to an overwhelming number of environmental pollutants in the air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we eat. Likewise, chemically-laden diets — those high in processed carbohydrates, saturated and trans fats, caffeine, sugar, and alcohol — stop our bodies from correctly carrying out their detoxification processes.

Detoxing through the diet is a great way to give your body a break and support its natural self-cleansing system.

So what can you do to support your body get rid of toxins - that won't leave you 'hangry'?

No, I’m not talking about the creepy crawly kind that you find on your pets, but the red and white ticks on certain packaged foods in supermarkets. I recently watched a short piece on Breakfast TV where a foundation spokesperson was talking about yet another tick they were adding to their repertoire of paid-for branding. Supposedly making helping New Zealanders to make quicker, easier, healthier choices…

Among the more commonly heard about autoimmune conditions, are those involving the thyroid. Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, hyperthyroid and hypothyroid are frequently blogged about by the likes of Sarah Wilson and Jessica Flanigan

The thyroid gland is responsible for managing growth and metabolism and Iodine is a mineral that’s essential to the proper functioning of this gland. An iodine deficiency can cause symptoms such as fatigue, high cholesterol, lethargy, depression, and swelling of the thyroid gland. You can support your thyroid and prevent dangerous deficiencies by eating the right amount of iodine rich foods each day. Here are five of my favourite food sources of iodine…