# Is it okay to eat the apple core? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 8, 2007, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-eat-the-apple-core/407328 "2007-06-08T23:45:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![cainxinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@cainxinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cainxinth)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2007, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-eat-the-apple-core/407328/1 "2007-06-08T23:45:50Z")
I was walking home today and I stopped to buy an apple. When I finished I was looking around for a garbage can for the core but there wasn’t one in sight. So I said what the heck and just ate it, seeds and all. It was pretty good too. But, is there anything bad about eating the core, a reason its not generally eaten? Are we just avoiding it out of preference? ---
**Author:** ![KlondikeGeoff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3e96dc/32.png) [@KlondikeGeoff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KlondikeGeoff)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2007, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-eat-the-apple-core/407328/2 "2007-06-08T23:53:52Z")
[QUOTE=cainxinth] I was walking home today and I stopped to buy an apple. When I finished I was looking around for a garbage can for the core but there wasn’t one in sight. So I said what the heck and just ate it, seeds and all. It was pretty good too. But, is there anything bad about eating the core, a reason its not generally eaten? Are we just avoiding it out of preference? [/QUOTE] Y’know, you’re kinda weird, man. 😃 Hey, it’s OK with me if you eat them, but can’t believe it would be very good for you. Digesting those seeds may tax the system. Let us know if you get a tummy ache. ---
**Author:** ![capybara](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/capybara/32/202_2.png) [@capybara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capybara)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2007, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-eat-the-apple-core/407328/3 "2007-06-09T00:08:19Z")
I think the seeds contain a tiny bit of some sort of cyanide but not enough to do anything. Maybe if you ate 400 applecores at once? ---
**Author:** ![neorxnawange](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f4b2a3/32.png) [@neorxnawange](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neorxnawange)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2007, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-eat-the-apple-core/407328/4 "2007-06-09T00:18:27Z")
I always eat the entire apple, skin, flesh, core, seeds, and stem. I started this years ago out of pure laziness, sitting on the couch, eating an apple and I was too lazy to get up to toss the core, so I ate it, it’s actually pretty good for most of the breeds I eat regularly (pink lady, gala, fuji, cameo, cripps) which tend to be the smaller apples. I eat at least two whole apples a week and I’ve noticed no ill effects. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2007, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-eat-the-apple-core/407328/5 "2007-06-09T00:36:53Z")
[QUOTE=capybara] I think the seeds contain a tiny bit of some sort of cyanide but not enough to do anything. Maybe if you ate 400 applecores at once? [/QUOTE] Something like that. [Cecil says you’re going to die.](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_212.html) Maybe, if you eat enough of them. ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2007, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-eat-the-apple-core/407328/6 "2007-06-09T00:45:18Z")
[QUOTE=cainxinth] But, is there anything bad about eating the core, a reason its not generally eaten? [/QUOTE] Let’s hope not. I’ve been eating them for 25 years. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2007, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-eat-the-apple-core/407328/7 "2007-06-09T00:46:50Z")
From the [Merck Veterinary Manual:](http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/210800.htm) > [@](#): > > Apple and other fruit trees contain prussic acid glycosides in leaves and seeds but little or none in the fleshy part of the fruits. In Sorghum spp forage grasses, leaves usually produce 2-25 times more HCN than do stems; seeds contain none. New shoots from young, rapidly growing plants often contain high concentrations of prussic acid glycosides. The cyanogenic glycoside potential of plants can be increased by heavy nitrate fertilization, especially in phosphorus-deficient soils… Wikipedia on [Cyanogenic Glycosides](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glycoside#Cyanogenic_glycosides) You’d have to eat a lot of apple seeds to get enough HCN to kill you. However, cattle ranchers do need to beware of [sorghums, sudan grass, marsh-arrow grass and wild cherries](http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/livestock/dairy/facts/87-016.htm) in their pastures. ---
**Author:** ![freckafree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/freckafree/32/3050_2.png) [@freckafree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freckafree)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2007, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-eat-the-apple-core/407328/8 "2007-06-09T00:57:22Z")
[QUOTE=cainxinth] But, is there anything bad about eating the core, a reason its not generally eaten? Are we just avoiding it out of preference? [/QUOTE] Because apple trees will sprout in your stomach and start growing out your ears. Jeez, I though everyone knew that! And we talk about fighting ignorance. Sigh. ---
**Author:** ![Geek\_Mecha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ecae2f/32.png) [@Geek\_Mecha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geek_Mecha)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2007, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-eat-the-apple-core/407328/9 "2007-06-09T01:22:46Z")
I learned from GI Joe that the cyanide in thousands of apples is enough to kill a giant, destructive, homicidal blob. Now I know… and knowing is half the battle. ---
**Author:** ![David\_Simmons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9de053/32.png) [@David\_Simmons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_Simmons)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2007, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-eat-the-apple-core/407328/10 "2007-06-09T01:55:20Z")
I can and have eaten them seeds and all on many occasions. There’s no problem with digesting the seeds and their capsules, they pass through relatively unchanged. Apple seeds, along with other fruit seeds, contain [cyanide compound](http://www.geocities.com/perfectapple/cyanide.html). (as I notice **Squink** said.) I’ve never read of anyone having problems from apple seeds. Maybe our medics have. Children have had serious problems with apricot pits which are quite a bit bigger. ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2007, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-eat-the-apple-core/407328/11 "2007-06-09T12:14:48Z")
[QUOTE=cainxinth] I was walking home today and I stopped to buy an apple. When I finished I was looking around for a garbage can for the core but there wasn’t one in sight. So I said what the heck and just ate it, seeds and all. It was pretty good too. But, is there anything bad about eating the core, a reason its not generally eaten? Are we just avoiding it out of preference? [/QUOTE] IIRC, experts on eating seeds in my 1[sup]st[/sup] grade class said you’d get an apple tree growing in your stomach. :eek: They also stated that swallowed gum will stay in your intestines for 7 years. :eek: :eek: ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2007, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-eat-the-apple-core/407328/12 "2007-06-09T12:41:14Z")
My father eats an apple by cutting it into pieces and eating every bit. He also makes fruit juice by throwing whole unpeeled fruit into a blender and zapping it. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2007, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-eat-the-apple-core/407328/13 "2007-06-09T13:39:16Z")
I eat the whole apple, although I try to spit out the seeds. Actually, if you crunch the seeds, they taste a bit almondy. I do not eat the stem, however. The only thing that worries me is the cellophane-like seed enclosures. But I have been doing this for years and there seems to be no harm. ---
**Author:** ![ianzin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ed655f/32.png) [@ianzin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ianzin)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2007, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-to-eat-the-apple-core/407328/14 "2007-06-09T18:00:48Z")
There’s no reason not to eat the core. I eat about 6 apples a week, and I eat everything except the stem. I have done for years. There are no ill effects, and the core provides a good source of roughage, which is important for good health. The only reason many do not eat the core is because of convention, tradition, ignorant rumours about possible adverse effects or an imagined dislike of the taste.