Sweet Medicine, Bitter Lesson: The Double Life of Licorice Root

The Great Harmonizer—and the Hidden Catch

For millennia, licorice has been the teammate herb—sweet, smoothing, blended into remedies from the Mediterranean to China. Ancient pharmacopeias placed it alongside treatments for cough, wounds, and digestive discomfort; today, it still shows up in teas, syrups, and supplements. ¹ Yet "licorice" candy in the U.S. often contains no licorice at all, using anise oil for flavor—a detail that matters when we talk about safety and expectations. ¹ Modern regulators in Europe continue to evaluate licorice root as a herbal medicine for coughs and minor gut complaints—a nod to long-standing use as they update scientific assessments. ²

When Research Stepped In: Stomach Stories

Consider the quiet misery of functional dyspepsia—the burn and bloat with no obvious lesion. In one double-blind trial, a standardized licorice extract (GutGard) taken for 30 days (75 mg twice daily) trimmed symptom scores by the second week and again by day 30 versus placebo. ⁴ In another randomized study, 150 mg daily over 60 days reduced Helicobacter pylori load on breath and stool antigen tests, hinting at antimicrobial help inside the stomach's storm. ⁵ But licorice is no guaranteed ulcer cure. Older trials of deglycyrrhizinated licorice (DGL) for active gastric or duodenal ulcers failed to beat placebo for healing—sobering results that temper the folklore. ⁶

A Throat, A Tube, A Simple Trick

Back to that lozenge: a meta-analysis of randomized trials finds that topical licorice—gargle or lozenge just before intubation—lessens the scratchy aftermath for many adults. Think of it as lining the throat's "velvet curtain" before the tube slides past. ³

The Paradox: Sweet Root, High Pressure

Then there's the headline no one expects from an herb: a 54-year-old Massachusetts man died after weeks of daily black-licorice candy. "Even a small amount of licorice you eat can increase your blood pressure a little bit," cardiologist Neel Butala told reporters after describing the case for the New England Journal of Medicine. ¹¹ The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has long warned that, for people over 40, about two ounces a day for two weeks can trigger an abnormal heart rhythm. As FDA physician Linda Katz puts it: "If you're 40 or older, eating 2 ounces of black licorice a day for at least two weeks could land you in the hospital." ⁸ The culprit is glycyrrhizin, the natural sweet compound in true licorice. Inside the kidney, it blocks an enzyme that normally disarms cortisol before it can press the body's "salt-retaining" button. With the enzyme jammed, cortisol effectively impersonates aldosterone: sodium and water are hoarded, potassium is dumped, blood pressure climbs, and dangerous arrhythmias can follow. Doctors call this a look-alike syndrome—pseudo-hyperaldosteronism. ⁹ Case reports document emergencies from potent teas, candies, and even cough syrups. ¹⁰

What Science Is Still Sorting Out

Licorice's chemistry is a crowded stage: beyond glycyrrhizin, flavonoids like licochalcones have anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial talents. That may explain the dyspepsia and H. pylori signals in modern trials—and why older, different extracts didn't match them. ⁴⁵⁶ Regulators are now revisiting monographs and reference lists to capture such nuances in new guidance. ² And then there's the curveball from virology's archives: during the 2003 SARS outbreak, researchers testing several compounds in infected cell cultures reported that "glycyrrhizin was the most active in inhibiting replication of the SARS-associated virus." It was a lab finding, not a clinical cure—but a reminder that this root still holds surprises. ⁷

Making Licorice Work For You (Without Working Against You)

If you're exploring licorice for digestion, the trial-tested extracts give practical waypoints: 75 mg twice daily for 30 days, or 150 mg once daily for 60 days, depending on the product. ⁴⁵ For sore throat after surgery, it's about timing—a lozenge or gargle just before the tube goes in. ³ To lower risk, look for deglycyrrhizinated (DGL) products when you don't need glycyrrhizin's effects; DGL trims the very compound that can raise blood pressure. ¹⁸

Two more safety checkpoints matter in real life:

• Labels: many "licorice" candies are actually anise-flavored and contain no licorice—don't assume benefits or risks without checking. ¹

• Med lists: licorice can interact with drugs that shift fluids or electrolytes (e.g., diuretics) and with corticosteroids; if you have high blood pressure, heart, or kidney disease, involve your clinician. ¹

The Takeaway

Licorice root can be a gracious host—easing dyspepsia in select trials and sparing throats after surgery—yet it can also quietly rearrange your body's salt-and-potassium housekeeping. The difference lies in the extract, the dose, the duration, and you. Respect those variables, and the old "harmonizer" has a better chance of singing on key. ³⁴⁵⁸⁹