Naked Science Forum

General Science => General Science => Topic started by: Nicci on 06/01/2012 20:16:47

Title: Are the seeds in peppers toxic?
Post by: Nicci on 06/01/2012 20:16:47

Are the seeds in sweet peppers toxic?

Title: Re: Are the seeds in peppers toxic?
Post by: CliffordK on 08/01/2012 04:28:40

I'm not seeing a lot of info on the WWW about seeds.

Green (sweet/bell) peppers lack capsaicin (the hot stuff).  A LD50 is listed for capsaicin in the purified form, but I think it is in a much higher dose than people generally get when consuming HOT peppers.  Anyway, your green peppers do not have it.

Back to the Green peppers.  I'm not seeing any notes about toxicity of any part of the fruit.  Everything seems to indicate that they are edible and a good source of vitamins.  However, here are some notes on the seeds.
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Food-Safety-Issues-767/Bell-pepper-seeds-pith.htm?rd=1

No source of the information, but they say that the seeds are not toxic, however, they are bitter and unpalatable, so you may choose not to eat them or cook with them.

Title: Re: Are the seeds in peppers toxic?
Post by: Don_1 on 11/01/2012 12:30:15

No, Capsicum seeds are not toxic, but, as Clifford wrote, they are bitter and (to some) unpalatable. Left in, they may spoil any dish you are cooking and may cause some 'heartburn' or stomach upset.