If you crack open at little as two or three cherry pits and eat the substance inside, you can develop cyanide poisoning. The contents of the pit contain amygdalin which tastes similar to an almond. Amygdalin converts to cyanide after consumption.
Symptoms of cyanide toxicity include dizziness, headache, nausea, a rapid heart rate and seizures .
The vitamins, minerals, fiber and disease-fighting antioxidants of fruits is very high and the cyanide containing parts of the pits is limited to the interior of the pits. The pits of green plums have the highest amygdalin content, followed by apricots, black plums, peaches, and red cherries. ,Apple seeds also contain amygdalin. Adults can tolerate small doses of cyanide For example An adult who eats more than three small raw apricot kernels, or less than half of one large kernel, at one time can exceed safe levels of the cyanide-releasing chemical, the European Food Safety Authority found. For toddlers, even one small apricot kernel was risky. Amygdalin is the basis for laetrile, which was marketed in the 1980’s as a cancer cure, but laetrile never demonstrated any significant anti-cancer effect in studies, the National Cancer Institute noted.
Source: Cherries send man to the hospital: Read this before eating summer fruit