apple seeds

[Will__]

A friend of mine eats the apple core after the apple. He'll says he's been doing it his whole life. I remember seeing an article the other day talking about apple seeds having minute amounts of cyanide (I thinK) in, and that regular consumption of apple seeds could in theory cause a buildup of cyanide in the system and potentially pose a health hazard. Is this true?

[Drewhound]

I've always eaten the seeds and I'm still here, I'm not sure how long for though :( Seriously they contain Cyanogenic glycosides, a sugar which can turn to cyanide when in the digestive system. This could only be a danger if you took a large amount of crushed seeds at one go, if you just eat the seeds they pass through the system intact

[jills]

My mums best friend has eaten whole apples her entire life. She eats one a day, and is now 65 years old, with no ill effects whatsoever.

[smudge]

One of my sisters has always eaten whole apples, including the core. She is 71 now & still does!

[Rabelais]

Cyanide does not "build up" in the body, it in fact gets dealt with very rapidly. A non-lethal dose of cyanide will be metabolised within about an hour in a healthy individual.

[Canib]

Apple seeds contain Laetril, which is said to be both healthful and a hazard.

[New Forester]

I read of a chap who was poisoned by eating a cupful of apple seeds for a bet. So don't try that. But a cupful would be hundreds of apples-worth. I always eat apples from one side through to the other, including the core. I've not died yet. I've known several people who eat them in round slices, top down, including the core. The pips are a little bitter if you chew them too much, but otherwise the core's the same as the rest of the apple, and you don't have to find somewhere to put it. What Rabelais says about cyanide is correct -- if there's not enough to kill you straight away, you're pretty safe. Cherry-laurel leaves have loads of cyanide, but my cattle eat potentially lethal amounts of them(anything over about 1 kg) without harm, because they do it slowly enough and eat other stuff in between.