How many apple pits can kill a person: the answer of scientists

Apple pits contain cyanide. If a person eats a large amount of these seeds, he can get serious poisoning and even die.

According to Science Notes, you should also not use stones from cherries, peaches, plums, pears and apricots - they contain cyanogenic glycosides.

"Your body can detoxify small amounts of cyanide compounds. If you happen to eat a pit of a cherry in a pie or swallow an apple pit or two, you'll be fine. In fact, if you swallow a few seeds whole, you'll absorb minimal toxic compounds." - scientists note.

Read also: Risk of cyanide poisoning: which fruits should not be eaten with stones

Scientists have warned that chewing the seeds of these fruits makes them much more dangerous for health. Children and pets suffer from seed poisoning much more often.

Symptoms of mild poisoning include headache, dizziness, confusion, restlessness and vomiting. Larger doses can lead to difficulty breathing, increased blood pressure and heart rate, and kidney failure. Reactions can include coma, seizures, and death from respiratory arrest.

How much cyanide is in one apple seed

A kilogram of apple pits contains about 700 milligrams of cyanide. If the average apple seed has a mass of 0.7 grams, this means that the seed contains 0.49 mg of cyanogenic compounds. If an average apple contains 8 seeds, that means you'll get 3.92 mg of cyanide if you eat them all.

Read also: Vegetables and fruits that cannot be peeled: all the useful substances in the peel

How many apple pits are enough for a person to die

It takes about a milligram of cyanide per kilogram of body weight to kill a person. So that's 70 mg of cyanide or 100 grams of apple pits to kill a 70 kg adult.

How many seeds and how many apples?

If there is 0.49 mg of cyanide per seed, you need 143 seeds to get a lethal dose. With 8 seeds per apple, this is almost 18 fruits.

"Keep in mind, if you swallow the seeds whole, you won't get the full dose. If you mix them into a smoothie or crumble them up, then you will. Your body will detoxify the cyanide, so you'll have to eat them pretty quickly. . . . To get sick, you have to is much less than a lethal dose. Also, it takes fewer seeds to sicken a person who weighs less or is sensitive to these compounds. For example, a child or a dog would be at much greater risk from the toxin," the researchers warned.

Earlier, scientists said how many eaten bananas can stop a person's heart.

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