Black licorice might look and style like an harmless deal with, however this sweet has a darkish facet. On Sept. 23, 2020, medical doctors reported that black licorice was the perpetrator within the dying of a 54-year-old man in Massachusetts. How may this be? Overdosing on licorice sounds extra like a twisted story than a believable reality.
I’m a toxicologist and writer of the guide “Happy to Meet Me: Genes, Germs, and the Curious Forces That Make Us Who We Are.” I’ve a long-standing curiosity in how chemical substances in meals and the surroundings have an effect on the physique and thoughts.
When one thing seemingly innocent like licorice is implicated in a dying, we’re reminded of the well-known proclamation by Swiss doctor Paracelsus, thought of the daddy of toxicology: “All issues are poison, and nothing is with out poison; the dosage alone makes it so a factor isn’t a poison.”
Root of the Downside
The unlucky man who succumbed to extreme black licorice consumption isn’t alone. There’s a smattering of comparable case experiences in medical journals during which sufferers skilled a sudden extreme enhance in blood stress, muscle breakdown and even dying.
Adversarial reactions are most often seen in folks over the age of 40 who’re consuming way more black licorice than the common individual. As well as, they’re normally consuming the product for extended durations of time. Within the 2020 case, the Massachusetts man had been consuming a bag and a half of black licorice day-after-day for 3 weeks.
Glycyrrhiza glabra is a species native to Eurasia and North Africa from which most confectionery licorice is produced. Franz Eugen Köhler/Köhler’s Medizinal-Pflanzen by way of Wikimedia Commons
Licorice is a flowering plant native to elements of Europe and Asia. Its scientific title, Glycyrrhiza, is derived from the Greek phrases “glykos” (candy) and “rhiza” (root). Individuals have lengthy used the fragrant and candy extract from its root as an natural treatment for all kinds of well being maladies, from heartburn and abdomen points to sore throats and cough. Nevertheless, there’s inadequate proof that licorice is efficient in treating any medical situation.
Glycyrrhizin, additionally referred to as glycyrrhizic acid, is the chemical in black licorice that provides the sweet its signature taste, but it surely additionally results in its poisonous results.
Glycyrrhizin mimics aldosterone, a hormone your adrenal glands make when your physique must retain sodium and excrete potassium. Sodium and potassium work collectively as a sort of mobile battery that drives communication between nerves and the contraction of muscle groups. An excessive amount of glycyrrhizin upsets the stability of those electrolytes, which may increase blood stress and disturb the guts’s rhythm. Different signs of extreme licorice consumption embrace swelling, muscle ache, numbness and headache. Examination of the person who died from consuming an excessive amount of licorice revealed that he had dangerously low ranges of potassium, in line with glycyrrhizin toxicity.
It needs to be famous that a lot of licorice-based meals don’t comprise actual licorice however use a flavoring substitute referred to as anise oil, which doesn’t pose the risks mentioned right here. As well as, regardless of its title, crimson licorice not often accommodates licorice extract. As an alternative, crimson licorice is infused with chemical substances that impart its cherry or strawberry taste.
Merchandise that comprise actual licorice are normally labeled as such and checklist licorice extract or glycyrrhizic acid among the many elements. Be suggested that some merchandise, similar to black jelly beans or Good & A lot, are mixtures of various candies that comprise each anise oil and licorice extract.
Purple licorice is sickeningly candy however suitable for eating. Darren Boucher/Getty Photographs
Hidden Risks Enhance Threat
Glycyrrhizin has the distinct licorice taste and is 50 occasions sweeter than sugar. It has been utilized in different kinds of sweet, comfortable drinks, tea, Belgian beers, throat lozenges and tobacco. The prevalence of glycyrrhizin could make it difficult to maintain monitor of how a lot has been consumed, and a mix of those merchandise may set off hostile results.
Some folks take dietary or well being dietary supplements that already comprise licorice, which will increase the chance of poisonous results from consuming black licorice sweet. Sure medicines similar to hydrochlorothiazide are diuretics that trigger elevated urination, which may decrease potassium ranges within the physique. Glycyrrhizin additionally lowers potassium ranges, additional disrupting the stability of electrolytes, which may produce muscle cramps and irregular coronary heart rhythms.
Individuals with sure preexisting circumstances are extra vulnerable to black licorice overdose. For instance, sufferers who have already got low potassium ranges, hypertension or coronary heart arrhythmia are prone to have better sensitivity to the results of extreme licorice. These with liver or kidney deficiencies can even retain glycyrrhizin of their bloodstream for longer durations, growing their danger of experiencing hostile results.
Safely Consuming Black Licorice
Should you’re a fan of black licorice, there is no such thing as a have to ban it out of your pantry. Eaten in small portions occasionally, licorice poses no vital menace to in any other case wholesome adults and youngsters.
However it’s advisable to watch your consumption. A 2024 examine performed in Sweden discovered that each day ingestion of 100 mg of licorice, which is thought of a secure quantity, for 2 weeks was adequate to lift blood stress by a mean of three.1 mm Hg. 1 / 4 of the contributors additionally had elevated blood ranges of a protein that’s made when the guts is working more durable.
Make sure you remind your children that sweet is a “typically meals,” particularly black licorice. The U.S. Meals and Drug Administration had issued warnings concerning the uncommon however severe results of an excessive amount of black licorice, advising that individuals keep away from consuming greater than 2 ounces of black licorice a day for 2 weeks or longer. The company advises that you probably have been consuming loads of black licorice and expertise an irregular coronary heart rhythm or muscle weak point, cease consuming it instantly and make contact with your well being care supplier.
Some scientists have additional cautioned in opposition to the routine use of licorice within the type of a dietary complement or tea for its alleged well being advantages, together with the therapy of cough related to COVID-19 or different respiratory infections. A assessment article from 2012 warned that “the each day consumption of licorice is by no means justified as a result of its advantages are minor in comparison with the hostile outcomes of power consumption.”
This text, initially printed Oct. 26, 2020, has been up to date to incorporate outcomes from a 2024 examine.
Invoice Sullivan is a Professor of Pharmacology and Toxicology at Indiana College. This text is republished from The Dialog underneath a Artistic Commons license. Learn the unique article.