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All About Licorice:
An Introduction
"The sweet root beloved by all."
What is Licorice ?
Family: Leguminosae
Genus and Species: Glycyrrhiza glabra, G. inflata, or G. uralensis
The licorice plant is a perennial schrub native to the Mediterranean regions, central to southern Russia, Middle East,
southeast Asia. Licorice is one of the most widely used medicinal herbs across the world, and broadly used especially
in almost all Chinese herbal formulas. Licorice of commerce and medicine mainly consists of the sweet roots from three species
officially recognized by Chinese pharmacopoeia: Glycyrrhiza glabra, G. inflata, or G. uralensis.
Licorice was collected from wild before the cultivation started. The first written record of such cultivation dates back to
around 13th century. Licorice is cultivated for 3-4 years before the roots are harvested. Teh genus name of licorice "Glycyrrhiza"
was given by Dioscorides, the first century physician, by putting "glukos" (meaing sweet) and "riza" (root) together. The root
and stolon of licorice is abundant with glycyrrhizin, which is a chemical compound fifty times sweeter than sucrose (sugar).
History
Licorice root has been used as medicinal plant for thousands of years all across the world. The records of licorice appear in Assyrian
clay tablets (ca. 2,500 B.C.), Egyptian papyruses, as well as in China and Europe. Ancient Arabians used licorice to treat coughs,
and in Europe, the use of licorice was first learned by Greeks from the Scythians. In about 3rd century B.C., Thoephrastus, a Greek
natural scientist, commented on the taste of different roots including the root of licorice, and the medicinal efficacy of licorice
root on asthma, dry cough, and other pectoral diseases. Licorice is mentioned in Chinese Materia Medica purportedly deveoped by
Sheng Nung (about 2,700 B.C.) and organized and written by an anonymous writer around 100 B.C. Many of the earlier therapeutic
applications of licorice are still being practiced in modern time.
Usage
German Commission E approved the internal use of licorice root for catarrh of the upper respiratory tract and gastric or duodenalulcers.
Licorice is a herbal remedy particularly well known for treating coughs, consumption, and chest complaints in general, notably
bronchitis. Licorice is a general ingredient for almost all herbal formulas with soothing properties. Anti-inflammatory, expectorant,
demulcent, and adrenocorticotropic actions of licoris have been reported in the British Herbal Compendium. Currently, licorice extract
has replaced the powder almost completely.
Dose: About 5-15 grams of cut or powdered licorice root per day, or dry extracts equivalent to 200-600 mg of glycyrrhizin is recommended.
Side effects: Prolonged, high-dose use may result in hypertension and edema (due to sodium retention and potassium loss), which will
reverse a few weeks after the discontinuation. Not recommended during pregnancy.
Many of DreamPharm's products contain licorice. Visit the home page and search for the keyword "licorice".
Chemistry and Pharmacology
A rather complete chemical composition list of licorice can be found in Dr.
Duke's Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases. Licorice root contains triterpenoid saponins (4-24%), mostly glycrrhizin, a
mixture of the potassium and calcium salts of glycyrrhizic acid; falvonoids (1%), mainly the flavonones liquiritin and liquiritigenin,
chalcones isoliquiritin, isoliquiritigenin, and isoflavonoids (formononetin); amines (1-2%) asparagine, betaine, and choline; amino
acids; 3-15% glucose and sucrose; starch (2-30%); polysaccharides (arabinogalactans); sterols (beta-sitosterol); coumarins (glycerin);
resin; and volatile oils (0.047%).The Commission E reports glycyrrhizic acid and the aglycone of glycyrrhizic acid accelerate the
healing of gastric ulcers. [Herbal Medicine - Expanded Commission E monographs, by Mark Blumenthal, Alicia Goldberg, and Josef Brinckmann,
first edition, 2000].
Licorice Research:
Licorice's effectiveness on bronchial and gastric discomforts has been widely known, well documented, and practiced all over the
world. Many of the scientific researches are focusing on the mechanisms of the licorice compounds' actions at molecular level.
Some examples of recent scientific and clinical research reports on licorice are provided:
reference source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=11882402&dopt=Abstract
Nutrition 2002 Mar;18(3):268-73 - Antiatherosclerotic effects of licorice extract supplementation on hypercholesterolemic
patients: increased resistance of LDL to atherogenic modifications, reduced plasma lipid levels, and decreased systolic blood pressure
reference source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=11731922&dopt=Abstract
Planta Med 2001 Nov;67(8):754-7 - Apoptosis induced by isoliquiritigenin in human gastric cancer MGC-803 cells
reference source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=11595510&dopt=Abstract
J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol 2001 Sep;78(3):291-8 - Estrogen-like activity of glabrene and other constituents isolated from licorice root
reference source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=11588889&dopt=Abstract
Nutr Cancer 2001;39(1):1-11 - Licorice and cancer
reference source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=11575586&dopt=Abstract
J Nutr Sci Vitaminol (Tokyo) 2001 Jun;47(3):270-3 - Antibacterial compounds of licorice against upper airway respiratory tract pathogens
reference source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=11394578&dopt=Abstract
Acta Virol 2001 Feb;45(1):51-4 - Glycyrrhizin increases survival of mice with herpes simplex encephalitis
reference source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=11092245&dopt=Abstract
Microbiol Immunol 2000;44(9):799-804 - Glycyrrhizin inhibits the lytic pathway of complement--possible mechanism of its anti-inflammatory
effect on liver cells in viral hepatitis
reference source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=11082698&dopt=Abstract
Yakugaku Zasshi 2000 Oct;120(10):849-62 - A drug over the millennia: pharmacognosy, chemistry, and pharmacology of licorice
Cancer Res 2000 Oct 15;60(20):5704-9 - Estrogenic and antiproliferative properties of glabridin from licorice in human breast cancer cells
reference source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=10944880&dopt=Abstract
J R Soc Health 2000 Jun;120(2):83-9 - Liquorice and its health implications
reference source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=10715847&dopt=Abstract
Phytomedicine 2000 Jan;6(6):439-45 - Protective effects of Glycyrrhizae radix extract and its compounds in a renal hypoxia
(ischemia)-reoxygenation (reperfusion) model
reference source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=9870547&dopt=Abstract
Pigment Cell Res 1998 Dec;11(6):355-61 - The inhibitory effect of glabridin from licorice extracts on melanogenesis and inflammation
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