Licorice Root

Common Name(s)

licorice root, licorice, liquorice, sweet root, gan zao (Chinese licorice)

Scientific Name(s)

Glycyrrhiza glabra, Glycyrrhiza uralensis (Chinese licorice)

General Information

Most licorice is grown in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. Licorice contains a compound called glycyrrhizin (or glycyrrhizic acid). Licorice has a long history of medicinal use in both Eastern and Western systems of medicine.

How is this product usually used?

Peeled licorice root is available in dried and powdered forms.

Licorice root is available as capsules, tablets, and liquid extracts.

Licorice can be found with glycyrrhizin removed; the product is called DGL (for "deglycyrrhizinated licorice").

Oral (chew between meals or 20 minutes before meals, up to 3 times per day)

• Children 3 to 4 years old: 190 mg to 760 mg per day
• Children 5 to 9 years old: 285 mg to 1140 mg per day
• Children and adolescents 10 to 14 years old: 570 mg to 2280 mg per day
• Adults and adolescents over 15 years old: 1140 mg to 4560 mg per day

Buccal (rinse or gargle, up to 4 times per day)

• Children 2 to 4 years old: 132 mg to 760 mg per day
• Children 5 to 9 years old: 200 mg to 1140 mg per day
• Children and adolescents 10 to 14 years old: 400 mg to 2280 mg per day
• Adults and adolescents over 15 years old: 800 mg to 4560 mg per day

Your health care provider may have recommended this product for other conditions. Contact a health care provider if you have questions.

What is this product used for?

Licorice is used as a folk or traditional remedy for stomach ulcers and sore throat, as well as for infections caused by viruses, such as hepatitis.

It can also be used as an expectorant to help relieve chest congestion, coughs, and bronchitis. Another use of licorice is to help relieve inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract.

Your health care provider may have recommended this product for other conditions. Contact a health care provider if you have questions.

What else should I be aware of?

There is not enough reliable data to determine whether licorice is effective for any condition.

Taking large amounts of licorice products containing glycyrrhizin can cause high blood pressure, salt and water retention, and low potassium levels, which could lead to heart problems. DGL products are thought to cause fewer side effects. Avoid licorice if you have low potassium levels, high blood pressure, or a heart or kidney disorder or disease.

The safety of using licorice as a supplement for more than several weeks has not been thoroughly studied. Consult your physician if you plan on using licorice for longer.

Taking licorice together with diuretics (water pills), corticosteroids, or other medicines that reduce the body's potassium levels could cause dangerously low potassium levels and should be avoided. You should also not use licorice if you are taking cardiac glycosides (e.g., digoxin). Licorice may also interact with the following agents:

• high blood pressure medications
• cisplatin
• estrogen
• midazolam
• other agents that are metabolized by the liver's cytochrome P450 enzyme system
• warfarin
• herbs such as digitalis, and lily-of-the-valley
• stimulant laxative herbs such as manna, senna, and rhubarb

When taken in large amounts, licorice can affect the body's levels of a hormone called cortisol and related steroid drugs, such as prednisone.

Licorice may affect estrogen levels and should be avoided by people who have hormone sensitive conditions like breast cancer, endometriosis, and uterine fibroids. It may also worsen erectile dysfunction.

Licorice may affect your blood pressure control during or after surgical procedures. Stop taking licorice at least 2 weeks before surgery.

Pregnant people should avoid using licorice as a supplement or consuming large amounts of licorice as food, as some research suggests it could increase the risk of preterm labor.

You should consult your physician if you have a liver disorder.

Before taking any new medications, including natural health products, speak to your physician, pharmacist, or other health care provider. Tell your health care provider about any natural health products you may be taking.

Source(s)

1. Health Canada. Natural Health Product Ingredients Database. Monograph: Licorice. Oral. Available at: https://webprod.hc-sc.gc.ca/nhpid-bdipsn/atReq.do?atid=deg.lic.reg.oral.orale&lang=eng.
2. Health Canada. Natural Health Product Ingredients Database. Monograph: Licorice. Buccal. https://webprod.hc-sc.gc.ca/nhpid-bdipsn/atReq.do?atid=deg.lic.reg.buccal.buccale&lang=eng.
3. National Medicines Comprehensive Database. Licorice.