Do Apple Seeds Have Cyanide?

Apple seeds contain a compound that can release cyanide. A 2017 study in the journal Nutrients reports that apple seeds contain a significant amount of amygdalin, about 1.0 to 3.9 mg per gram of seeds, and describes it as a cyanogenic glycoside that can be broken down in mammals to toxic hydrogen cyanide. The European Food Safety Authority explains that cyanogenic glycosides contain chemically bound cyanide, and that cyanide is released when plant cells are damaged, for example by grinding or chewing, which brings the glycosides into contact with the enzymes that break them down.

The same compound is sold as a supplement. A 2017 case report in Case Reports in Emergency Medicine describes amygdalin, also known as Laetrile or vitamin B17, as a poisonous cyanogenic glycoside found naturally in many plants, including bitter almonds and the pips of many fruits, particularly apricot kernels. In the case it describes, a patient took 1,500 mg of amygdalin as prescribed, which the authors say contained about 90 mg of cyanide, roughly 1.8 times the minimum lethal dose of 50 mg.

A 2021 review in the journal Molecules says there have been numerous cases of cyanide poisoning from eating too many seeds containing amygdalin and from Laetrile treatment, but no reports of people cured of cancer by consuming those seeds. In a September 2025 advisory letter, the FDA told an online seller whose website suggested an amygdalin vitamin B17 product could treat or prevent cancer and tumors that introducing products into interstate commerce for such uses violates the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.