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Consequences of taking licorice
Precautions with the use of licorice or liquorice
To reduce the side effects of this plant, short treatments of 4 weeks are recommended. Never take the plant for more than 6 consecutive weeks.
What are the side effects of licorice?
Prolonged use of more than one month may produce the side effects described below, especially water retention and hypertension.
Licorice root Dermatitis: Licorice can cause dermatitis or irritation from direct contact of the fresh plant with the skin.
- Hypertension: Licorice root has hypertensive effects. These effects can occur due to long-term or shorter treatments, due to each person’s individual sensitivity to glycyrrhizic acid.
- Headache or migraine due to high blood pressure.
- Lethargy, muscle weakness, cramps due to potassium loss.
- Decreased desire or libido: In a study conducted in Iran, administration of 1.3g of dry licorice extract for ten consecutive days was observed to decrease the testosterone levels of those affected and inhibit their desire.
- Edema or fluid retention: swollen ankles and face.
- Dark urine, increased diuresis, polyuria.
- Loss of menstruation
- People who consume a lot of salt may experience some of these side effects with less than 5g of the root.
What to do when adverse effects appear?
If you experience the side effects described here, you should stop licorice treatment. Consult your doctor and monitor your blood pressure. Sometimes, antihypertensive medications are necessary to lower blood pressure and control the body’s electrolyte balance (especially potassium).
Licorice has significant contraindications. See the Contraindications of licorice in the listing below.
Licorice treatments without side effects
The glycyrrhizin present in licorice has important contraindications due to its hypertensive effects.
To avoid the side effects of glycyrrhizin and its derivatives, deglycyrrhizinated licorice (DGL) is available on the market. These are standardized licorice products without this component, called DGL (Deglycyrrhizinated Licorice “licorice without glycyrrhizin“). These preparations do not raise blood pressure or produce the side effects described.
Licorice during pregnancy and breastfeeding
Licorice treatments are contraindicated during pregnancy and breastfeeding. A study conducted in Finland concluded that licorice consumption caused premature births. *See: Plants and pregnancy
More information on licorice
