Apple and Pear Seeds
Our parents always used to tell us not to swallow apple and pear seeds because they could cause trees to grow in our stomachs. Well, as it turns out, our parents were certainly on to something but as children, we probably wouldn’t have understood the full blow effects of the seeds.
Scaring us with imagery of trees growing inside of us did the trick, though!
So, what’s really going on? These seeds contain compounds that are digested into cyanide. The compounds, known as nitrilosides are considered essential. As with a lot of things in life, too much of anything can be dangerous. Extremely high concentrations of nitrilosides can be very dangerous to us.
One or two seeds are probably fine if ingested by accident, but don’t make a habit out of it!
