Can you eat crab apples? It is perfectly ok to eat crab apples as long as you don’t eat the seeds or core. The seeds in the crab apples contain small amounts of cyanogenic glycoside. Cyanide is considered a toxic substance and the amount of cyanogenic glycoside in these seeds is minimal.
If you eat a lot of these seeds in one sitting you can potentially experience some form of ill effects. So, swallowing these seeds once or twice shouldn’t be too much of a concern.
Can you eat crab apples? Photo credit: iStock-lovelypeace
Crab apples contain some of the same health benefits that regular apples contain. Here is the nutritional profile of one crab apple:
- 18 calories
- Carbs- 5 grams
- Fiber- 1 gram
- Vitamin C- 2% of the Daily Value
- Potassium- 1% of the Daily Value
- Copper- 1% of the Daily Value
Crab apples have anticancer compounds which helps to fight off chronic diseases and free radicals. Some of the healthy nutrients of crab apples are fiber, vitamin C and potassium. If you eat the skin with the crab apple that is half of the fiber which contains polyphenols.
The fiber in crab apples can help control blood sugar, protect against colon cancer, help with growth of good bacteria and help reduce cholesterol levels.
Here are some of the symptoms of cyanide poisoning:
- Headache
- Vomiting
- Anxiety
- Kidney Failure
- Dizziness
- Increased blood pressure
- Increased heart rate
- Gastritis
- Death to respiratory arrest
Some of the treatment for accidental crab apple seed poisoning or cyanide overdose is direct binding agents and sulfur donors. If you eat 3 to 4 seeds or a small to moderate amount of seeds it shouldn’t hurt you since cyanide molecules can be detoxified by the body.
Cyanide poisoning can potentially happen if you eat more than 100 seeds from the crab apple in one sitting.
“It is perfectly ok to eat crab apples as long as you don’t eat the seeds or core.” Celebrity Fitness & Nutrition Expert Obi Obadike
The Bottom Line is crab apples are safe to eat as long as you don’t eat the core or seeds. It does have the same health benefits as regular apples.
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References
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- Qin X, Xing YF, Zhou Z, Yao Y. Dihydrochalcone Compounds Isolated from Crabapple Leaves Showed Anticancer Effects on Human Cancer Cell Lines. Molecules. 2015 Nov 27;20(12):21193-203. doi: 10.3390/molecules201219754. PMID: 26633321; PMCID: PMC6332433.
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- Koutsos A, Tuohy KM, Lovegrove JA. Apples and cardiovascular health–is the gut microbiota a core consideration? Nutrients. 2015 May 26;7(6):3959-98. doi: 10.3390/nu7063959. PMID: 26016654; PMCID: PMC4488768.
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- Bolarinwa IF, Orfila C, Morgan MR. Determination of amygdalin in apple seeds, fresh apples and processed apple juices. Food Chem. 2015 Mar 1;170:437-42. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2014.08.083. Epub 2014 Aug 29. PMID: 25306368.
- USDA- https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/341508/nutrients
