• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
GardenFork - Eclectic DIY
  • May I Email You?
  • Podcast
  • Articles
  • Video
menu icon
go to homepage
  • May I Email You?
  • Podcast
  • Articles
  • Video
  • Follow Me Here:

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • May I Email You?
    • Podcast
    • Articles
    • Video
  • Follow Me Here:

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Articles » Cooking - Recipes

    Do apple seeds have arsenic in them?

    by Eric · This post may contain affiliate links, its one way we pay the bills. · 6 Comments

    I had not heard that appleseeds had arsenic in them until a viewer asked about it on our how to make applesauce video.

    With a little searching, I found the Department of Energy Ask a Scientist site, where this question of arsenic in appleseeds was answered to my satisfaction.

    Question -   Do apple seeds have arsenic in them? Is it dangerous to
    process apples with the seeds still in the fruit?

    The good news: apple seeds do not contain arsenic. The bad news:  apple
    seeds DO contain cyanide. As for processing the apples, what kind of
    processing are you interested in? Grinding apples and pressing them for
    cider doesn't release enough cyanide to be a problem;  neither does cooking
    apples and straining them to make a sauce. About the only way you can
    actually ruin into a problem with the toxicity of apple seeds is if you save
    the seeds from about a bushel of apples and eat them all at once.

    So, as long as you don't eat a bushel of apple seeds, you are fine. Eating a bushel full of anything could probably kill you, don't you think?

    What other poisons in food myths, rumors, facts have you heard about? Let us know below.

    « Green Travel : Take the Train : RealWorldGreen.com
    Tornadoes, Cast Iron, Baking Bread: GardenFork Radio »

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Scott

      January 04, 2011 at 2:44 pm

      Very nice. I love informative mythbusting subjects like this.

    2. Tonia Moxley

      January 05, 2011 at 12:13 pm

      Thanks very much for clearing this up! Wow. Cyanide. Amazing what's in plants. Glad it can't be extracted by making sauce, too.

    3. Gail

      January 09, 2011 at 10:42 am

      I couldn't think of a food myth off the top of my head, so I googled food myths and WOW! there are bunches out there! Thank you for jumpstarting such sn interesting topic!

    4. Laurel

      January 31, 2011 at 11:40 am

      I know you can give apple to your rabbits, but not the seeds because of the arsenic. I did not know that cooking the seed makes it safe . Thanks a lot.!

    5. paul

      February 01, 2012 at 12:40 pm

      There is a conflict of wording that should be cleared up.

      The answered question says

      "About the only way you can actually ruin into a problem with the toxicity of apple seeds is if you save the seeds from about a bushel of apples and eat them all at once."

      The author responded,

      "So, as long as you don’t eat a bushel of apple seeds, you are fine. Eating a bushel full of anything could probably kill you, don’t you think?"

      The answered question does not say a "bushel" of apple seeds it says the "seeds" from a bushel of apples which would not be a bushel of seeds.

      There is a big difference between a bushel of apple seeds and the seeds from a bushel of apples.

    6. Tnr

      September 30, 2021 at 11:32 pm

      Paul, what’s your point? Don’t eat seeds. Who the helm eats seeds? and either one would kill you or at least make you extremely sick

    Leave a Reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Primary Sidebar

    Become a Monthly Supporter of GardenFork. Click Here To Learn More

    Pages

    • About
    • Let's Stay Connected With Each Other
    • Maple Syrup Evaporator Information
    • May I Email You?
    • Pizza Oven Plans & Make Pizza Videos
    • Privacy Policy
    • Radio
    • Terms of Use & Affliate Information
    • The GF Amazon Shop
    • Want More GardenFork? Here You Go:

    My lawyer makes me do this part: Visitors agree to our Terms Of Service and Affliate Information - Use This Information At Your Own Risk

    Produced by GardenFork Media LLC, Brooklyn, NY ©2021 All Rights Reserved