.
“licorice
(american english)
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‘liquorice’
(british english)
( LIK-ər-is(h))
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*the common name of ‘glycyrrhiza glabra’ – a ‘flowering plant’ of the bean family ‘fabaceae’ from the ‘root’ of which a [sweet / aromatic flavoring] can be extracted*
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The liquorice plant is a herbaceous perennial legume native to Western Asia, North Africa and southern Europe.[1]
It is not botanically closely related to anise or fennel, which are sources of similar flavouring compounds.
(Another such source, star anise, is even more distant from anise and fennel than liquorice is, despite its similar common name.)
Liquorice is used as a flavouring in candies and tobacco, particularly in some European and West Asian countries.
Liquorice extracts have been used in herbalism and traditional medicine.[7] Excessive consumption of liquorice (more than 2 mg/kg per day of pure glycyrrhizinic acid, a liquorice component) may result in adverse effects,[7] such as hypokalemia, increased blood pressure, muscle weakness,[8] and death.[9]
Etymology[edit]
The word “liquorice”/”licorice”, via Anglo-French: lycorys, derived from late Latin: liquiritia, a corrupted latinization of the Koine Greek γλυκύρριζα,[10] the name provided by Dioscorides.[11] Γλυκύρριζα, glukurriza, means “sweet root”,[12] from γλυκύς, glukus, ‘sweet’,[13] and ῥίζα, rhiza, ‘root’.[14] Modern Greek spelling of the genus is γλυκόριζα.[15] Pliny latinized γλυκύρριζα as glycyrrhiza,[10] hence its binomial name.
As of 2021, its English common name is spelled “liquorice” in most of the Commonwealth, but “licorice” in the United States and sometimes Canada.[citation needed] Historically, there were numerous other spellings.[10]
Description[edit]
Liquorice is a herbaceous perennial, growing to 1 metre (40 in) in height, with pinnate leaves about 7–15 cm (3–6 in) long, with 9–17 leaflets. The flowers are 8–12 mm (5⁄16–1⁄2 in) long, purple to pale whitish blue, produced in a loose inflorescence. The fruit is an oblong pod, 20–30 mm (3⁄4–1+1⁄8 in) long, containing several seeds.[16] The roots are stoloniferous.[17]
Chemistry[edit]
The scent of liquorice root comes from a complex and variable combination of compounds, of which anethole is up to 3% of total volatiles. Much of the sweetness in liquorice comes from glycyrrhizin, which has a sweet taste, 30–50 times the sweetness of sugar. The sweetness is very different from sugar, being less instant, tart, and lasting longer.
The isoflavene glabrene and the isoflavane glabridin, found in the roots of liquorice, are phytoestrogens.[18][19]
Cultivation and uses[edit]
Liquorice, which grows best in well-drained soils in deep valleys with full sun, is harvested in the autumn two to three years after planting.[16] Countries producing liquorice include India, Iran, Italy, Afghanistan, the People’s Republic of China, Pakistan, Iraq, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Turkey.[20]
In 2019, the world market for liquorice extract was US$191 million, with the largest exporters led by France, Uzbekistan, China, and Iran, each providing 10-14% of the total.[21]
Tobacco[edit]
Liquorice is used as a flavouring agent for tobacco for flavour enhancing and moistening agents in the manufacture of American blend cigarettes, moist snuff, chewing tobacco, and pipe tobacco.[20][22] Liquorice provides tobacco products with a natural sweetness and a distinctive flavour that blends readily with the natural and imitation flavouring components employed in the tobacco industry.[20] As of 2009, the US Food and Drug Administration banned the use of any “characterizing flavors” other than menthol from cigarettes, but not other manufactured tobacco products.[23]
Food and confectionery[edit]
Dried sticks of liquorice root
Liquorice flavour is found in a wide variety of candies or sweets. In most of these candies, the taste is reinforced by aniseed oil so the actual content of liquorice is very low. Liquorice confections are primarily purchased by consumers in Europe, but are also popular in other countries such as Australia and New Zealand.[20]
In the Netherlands, liquorice confectionery (drop) is one of the most popular forms of sweets. It is sold in many forms. Mixing it with mint, menthol, aniseed, or laurel is quite popular. Mixing it with ammonium chloride (salmiak) is also popular as it is in Finland. A popular example of salmiak liquorice in the Netherlands is known as zoute drop (salty liquorice), but contains very little salt, i.e., sodium chloride.[24] Strong, salty sweets are also popular in Nordic countries where liquorice flavoured alcohols are also popular, particularly in Denmark and Finland.
Dried sticks of the liquorice root are also a traditional confectionery in their own right in the Netherlands as were they once in Britain although their popularity has waned in recent decades. They were sold simply as sticks of zoethout (‘sweet wood’) to chew on as a candy. Through chewing and suckling, the intensely sweet flavour is released. The sweetness is 30 to 50 times as strong as sucrose, without causing damage to teeth. Since about the 1970s, zoethout has become rarer and been replaced by easier to consume candies (including ‘drop’).
Pontefract in Yorkshire, England, is where liquorice mixed with sugar began to be used as a sweet in the contemporary way.[25] Pontefract cakes were originally made there.[26] In Cumbria, County Durham, Yorkshire and Lancashire, it is colloquially known as ‘Spanish’, supposedly because Spanish monks grew liquorice root at Rievaulx Abbey near Thirsk.[27]
In Italy, Spain and France, liquorice is popular in its natural form. The root of the plant is simply dug up, washed, dried, and chewed as a mouth freshener. Throughout Italy, unsweetened liquorice is consumed in the form of small black pieces made only from 100% pure liquorice extract. In Calabria a popular liqueur is made from pure liquorice extract. Liquorice is used in Syria and Egypt, where it is sold as a drink, in shops as well as street vendors.
Research[edit]
Properties of glycyrrhizin are under preliminary research, such as for hepatitis C or topical treatment of psoriasis, but the low quality of studies as of 2017 prevents conclusions about efficacy and safety.[7][28]
Traditional medicine[edit]
In traditional Chinese medicine, a related species G. uralensis (often translated as “liquorice”) is known as “gancao” (Chinese: 甘草; “sweet grass”), and is believed to “harmonize” the ingredients in a formula.[29] Liquorice has been used in Ayurveda in the belief it may treat various diseases,[30][31][32] although there is no high-quality clinical research to indicate it is safe or effective for any medicinal purpose. European Medical Agency added liquorice in their list of herbal medicine.[33]
Toxicity[edit]
Its major dose-limiting toxicities are corticosteroid in nature, because of the inhibitory effect that its chief active constituents, glycyrrhizin and enoxolone, have on cortisol degradation, and include edema, hypokalaemia, weight gain or loss, and hypertension.[34][35]
The United States Food and Drug Administration believes that foods containing liquorice and its derivatives (including glycyrrhizin) are safe if not consumed excessively. Other jurisdictions have suggested no more than 100 mg to 200 mg of glycyrrhizin per day, the equivalent of about 70 to 150 g (2+1⁄2 to 5+1⁄4 oz) of liquorice confectionery.[8] Liquorice should not be used during pregnancy.[7]
Fungicide[edit]
The essential oils inhibit the growth of Aspergillus flavus.[36]
Liquorice poisoning[edit]
Liquorice is an extract from the Glycyrrhiza glabra plant which contains glycyrrhizic acid, or GZA. GZA is made of one molecule of glycyrrhetinic acid and two molecules of glucuronic acid.[37] The extracts from the root of the plant can be referred to as liquorice, sweet root, and glycyrrhiza extract. G. glabra grows in Europe and Western Asia. When administered orally, the product of glycyrrhetic acid is found in human urine whereas GZA is not.[37] This shows that glycyrrhetic acid is absorbed and metabolized in the intestines in humans. GZA is hydrolyzed to glycyrrhetic acid in the intestines by bacteria.[38]
For thousands of years G. glabra has been used for medicinal purposes including indigestion and stomach inflammation.[39] Some other medicinal purposes are cough suppression, ulcer treatment, and use as a laxative. Also, salts of GZA can be used in many products as sweeteners and aromatizers. The major use of liquorice goes towards the tobacco industry, at roughly 90% of usage. The rest is split evenly between food and pharmaceutics, at 5% of usage each (Federal Register, 1983). Liquorice extract is often found in sweets and many candies, some drugs, and beverages like root beer. It can also be used in chewing gum, tobacco products like snuff, and toothpaste.
An increase in intake of liquorice can cause many toxic effects. Hyper-mineralocorticosteroid syndrome can occur when the body retains sodium, loses potassium altering biochemical and hormonal activities.[40] Some of these activities include lower aldosterone level, decline of the renin-angiotensin system and increased levels of the atrial natriuretic hormone in order to compensate the variations in homoeostasis.[41]
Some other symptoms of toxicity include electrolyte imbalance, edema, increased blood pressure, weight gain, heart problems, and weakness. Individuals will experience certain symptoms based on the severity of toxicity. Some other complaints include fatigue, shortness of breath, kidney failure, and paralysis.[42][43] At least one death has been attributed to excessive licorice consumption.[44]
Many adverse effects of liquorice poisoning can be seen and most are attributed to the mineralocorticoid effects of GZA. Depending on the dose and intake of liquorice, serious problems and even hospitalization can occur. People with previously existing heart or kidney problems may be more susceptible to GZA and liquorice poisoning.[40] It is important to monitor the amount of liquorice consumed in order to prevent toxicity. It is difficult to determine a safe level, due to many varying factors from person to person. In the most sensitive individuals, daily intake of about 100 mg GZA can cause problems.[45] This is equivalent to 50 g liquorice sweets. However, most people can consume up to 400 mg before experiencing symptoms, which would be about 200 g liquorice sweets. A rule of thumb is that a normal healthy person can consume 10 mg GZA a day.[46] In 2020, physicians reported a case of a man who died of cardiac arrest as a result of drastically low potassium levels. He had been eating a bag of black licorice a day for three weeks previously.[9][47]
Gallery[edit]
Liquorice root with bark
Inflorescence of G. glabra
Various liquorice products
Different flavoured liquorice sticks
Foliage
G. glabra from Koehler’s Medicinal-Plants
References[edit]
^ Jump up to: a b “Glycyrrhiza glabra”. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Agricultural Research Service (ARS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 6 March 2008.
^ The Plant List: A Working List of All Plant Species, retrieved 7 March 2017
^ = 3C84D003DA5278F0FB83BD170E51FADA?find_wholeName = Glycyrrhiza+pallida The International Plant Names Index, retrieved 7 March 2017
^ = 3C84D003DA5278F0FB83BD170E51FADA?find_wholeName = Glycyrrhiza+violacea The International Plant Names Index, retrieved 7 March 2017
^ “Liquorice”. Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
^ Jump up to: a b “Licorice”. Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
^ Jump up to: a b c d “Licorice root”. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, US National Institutes of Health. September 2016. Retrieved 20 December 2017.
^ Jump up to: a b Omar, Hesham R; Komarova, Irina; El-Ghonemi, Mohamed; Ahmed, Fathy; Rashad, Rania; Abdelmalak, Hany D; Yerramadha, Muralidhar Reddy; Ali, Yaseen; Camporesi, Enrico M (2012). “How much is too much? in Licorice abuse: time to send a warning message from Therapeutic Advances in Endocrinology and Metabolism”. Ther Adv Endocrinol Metab. 3 (4): 125–38. doi:10.1177/2042018812454322. PMC 3498851. PMID 23185686.
^ Jump up to: a b Edelman, Elazer R.; Butala, Neel M.; Avery, Laura L.; Lundquist, Andrew L.; Dighe, Anand S. (2020-09-24). Cabot, Richard C.; Rosenberg, Eric S.; Pierce, Virginia M.; Dudzinski, David M.; Baggett, Meridale V.; Sgroi, Dennis C.; Shepard, Jo-Anne O.; Tran, Kathy M.; Roberts, Matthew B. (eds.). “Case 30-2020: A 54-Year-Old Man with Sudden Cardiac Arrest”. New England Journal of Medicine. 383 (13): 1263–1275. doi:10.1056/NEJMcpc2002420. ISSN 0028-4793. PMID 32966726.
^ Jump up to: a b c Bradley, Henry, ed. (1908). “Liquorice, licorice”. A New English Dictionary On Historical Priciples (NED). VI. L to N. Oxford, England: Claredon Press. p. 332. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
^ google books Maud Grieve, Manya Marshall – A modern herbal: the medicinal, culinary, cosmetic and economic properties, cultivation and folk-lore of herbs, grasses, fungi, shrubs, & trees with all their modern scientific uses, Volume 2 Dover Publications, 1982 & Pharmacist’s Guide to Medicinal Herbs Arthur M. Presser Smart Publications, 1 April 2001 2012-05-19
^ γλυκύρριζα, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, on Perseus
^ γλυκύς, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, on Perseus
^ ῥίζα, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, on Perseus
^ “γλυκύρριζα”. Epitome of the Kriaras Dictionary (online version) (in Greek). Center for the Greek Language. Portal for the greek language. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
^ Jump up to: a b Huxley, A., ed. (1992). New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. ISBN 0-333-47494-5
^ Brown, D., ed. (1995). “The RHS encyclopedia of herbs and their uses”. ISBN 1-4053-0059-0
^ Somjen, D.; Katzburg, S.; Vaya, J.; Kaye, A. M.; Hendel, D.; Posner, G. H.; Tamir, S. (2004). “Estrogenic activity of glabridin and glabrene from licorice roots on human osteoblasts and prepubertal rat skeletal tissues”. The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. 91 (4–5): 241–246. doi:10.1016/j.jsbmb.2004.04.008. PMID 15336701. S2CID 16238533.
^ Tamir, S.; Eizenberg, M.; Somjen, D.; Izrael, S.; Vaya, J. (2001). “Estrogen-like activity of glabrene and other constituents isolated from licorice root”. The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. 78 (3): 291–298. doi:10.1016/S0960-0760(01)00093-0. PMID 11595510. S2CID 40171833.
^ Jump up to: a b c d M & F Worldwide Corp., Annual Report on Form 10-K for the Year Ended December 31, 2010.
^ “Liquorice extract: world market”. Observatory of Economic Complexity. 2020. Retrieved 11 March 2021.
^ Erik Assadourian, Cigarette Production Drops Archived 2011-12-09 at the Wayback Machine, Vital Signs 2005, at 70.
^ “Flavored Tobacco”. US Food and Drug Administration. 22 September 2009. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
^ [1] the online Dutch food composition database]
^ “Right good food from the Ridings”. AboutFood.com. 25 October 2007. Archived from the original on 7 June 2007.
^ “The strange story of Britain’s oldest sweet”. BBC Travel. 2019-07-11.
^ “Where Liquorice Roots Go Deep”. Northern Echo. Retrieved 9 December 2008.
^ Yu, J. J; Zhang, C. S; Coyle, M. E; Du, Y; Zhang, A. L; Guo, X; Xue, C. C; Lu, C (2017). “Compound glycyrrhizin plus conventional therapy for psoriasis vulgaris: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials”. Current Medical Research and Opinion. 33 (2): 279–287. doi:10.1080/03007995.2016.1254605. PMID 27786567. S2CID 4394282.
^ Bensky, Dan; et al. (2004). Chinese Herbal Medicine: Materia Medica, Third Edition. Eastland Press. ISBN 978-0-939616-42-8.
^ Balakrishna, Acharya (2006). Ayurveda: Its Principles & Philosophies. New Delhi, India: Divya prakashan. p. 206. ISBN 978-8189235567.
^ Tewari, D; Mocan, A; Parvanov, E. D; Sah, A. N; Nabavi, S. M; Huminiecki, L; Ma, Z. F; Lee, Y. Y; Horbańczuk, J. O; Atanasov, A. G (2017). “Ethnopharmacological Approaches for Therapy of Jaundice: Part II. Highly Used Plant Species from Acanthaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Asteraceae, Combretaceae, and Fabaceae Families”. Frontiers in Pharmacology. 8: 519. doi:10.3389/fphar.2017.00519. PMC 5554347. PMID 28848436.
^ Wendy Christensen (2009). Empire of Ancient Egypt. Infobase Publishing. pp. 98–. ISBN 978-1-60413-160-4.
^ “Liquiritiae radix”. European Medicines Agency. Retrieved 1 June 2021.
^ Olukoga, A; Donaldson, D (June 2000). “Liquorice and its health implications”. The Journal of the Royal Society for the Promotion of Health. 120 (2): 83–9. doi:10.1177/146642400012000203. PMID 10944880. S2CID 39005138.
^ Armanini, D; Fiore, C; Mattarello, MJ; Bielenberg, J; Palermo, M (September 2002). “History of the endocrine effects of licorice”. Experimental and Clinical Endocrinology & Diabetes. 110 (6): 257–61. doi:10.1055/s-2002-34587. PMID 12373628.
^ Mamedov, Nazim A.; Egamberdieva, Dilfuza (2019). “Phytochemical Constituents and Pharmacological Effects of Licorice: A Review”. Plant and Human Health, Volume 3. Cham: Springer Publishing. pp. 1–21. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-04408-4_1. ISBN 978-3-030-04407-7. S2CID 104427400.
^ Jump up to: a b Krähenbühl, Stephan; Hasler, Felix; Krapf, Reto (1994). “Analysis and pharmacokinetics of glycyrrhizic acid and glycyrrhetinic acid in humans and experimental animals”. Steroids. 59 (2): 121–126. doi:10.1016/0039-128X(94)90088-4. ISSN 0039-128X. PMID 8191540. S2CID 22198298.
^ Akao, Taiko; Akao, Teruaki; Kobashi, Kyoichi (1987). “Glycyrrhizin .BETA.-D-glucuronidase of Eubacterium sp. from human intestinal flora”. Chemical and Pharmaceutical Bulletin. 35 (2): 705–710. doi:10.1248/cpb.35.705. ISSN 0009-2363. PMID 3594680.
^ Gibson, M. R. (1978). “Glycyrrhiza in old and new perspectives”. Lloydia. 41 (4): 348–354. PMID 353426.
^ Jump up to: a b Omar, H. R.; Komarova, I.; El-Ghonemi, M.; Fathy, A.; Rashad, R.; Abdelmalak, H. D.; Yerramadha, M. R.; Ali, Y.; Helal, E.; Camporesi, E. M. (2012). “Licorice abuse: time to send a warning message”. Therapeutic Advances in Endocrinology and Metabolism. 3 (4): 125–138. doi:10.1177/2042018812454322. ISSN 2042-0188. PMC 3498851. PMID 23185686.
^ Mackenzie, Marius A.; Hoefnagels, Willibrord H. L.; Jansen, Renè W. M. M.; Benraad, Theo J.; Kloppenborg, Peter W. C. (1990). “The Influence of Glycyrrhetinic Acid on Plasma Cortisol and Cortisone in Healthy Young Volunteers”. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. 70 (6): 1637–1643. doi:10.1210/jcem-70-6-1637. ISSN 0021-972X. PMID 2161425.
^ Blachley, Jon D.; Knochel, James P. (1980). “Tobacco Chewer’s Hypokalemia: Licorice Revisited”. New England Journal of Medicine. 302 (14): 784–785. doi:10.1056/NEJM198004033021405. ISSN 0028-4793. PMID 6986557.
^ Toner, J. M.; Ramsey, L. E. (1985). “Liquorice can damage your health”. Practitioner. 229 (1408): 858–860. PMID 4059165.
^ “Man dies after eating bag of licorice every day for a few weeks”. Associated Press. 24 September 2020. Retrieved 24 September 2020.
^ Adeneye, Adejuwon Adewale (2014). “Subchronic and Chronic Toxicities of African Medicinal Plants”. Toxicological Survey of African Medicinal Plants. pp. 99–133. doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-800018-2.00006-6. ISBN 9780128000182.
^ Størmer, F.C.; Reistad, R.; Alexander, J. (1993). “Glycyrrhizic acid in liquorice—Evaluation of health hazard”. Food and Chemical Toxicology. 31 (4): 303–312. doi:10.1016/0278-6915(93)90080-I. ISSN 0278-6915. PMID 8386690.
^ Cramer, Maria (2020-09-26). “A Man Died After Eating a Bag of Black Licorice Every Day”. The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-09-27.
External links[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Liquorice.
“Liquorice” . Encyclopædia Britannica. 16 (11th ed.). 1911.
Glycyrrhiza glabra (licorice), Kew plant profile
What’s That Stuff?: Licorice, Chemical & Engineering News
.
*root of glycyrrhiza glabra from which a somewhat sweet flavour can be extracted*
en.wikipedia.org /wiki/Liquorice
Liquorice
Contributors to Wikimedia projects19-24 minutes 6/18/2003
DOI: 10.1177/2042018812454322, Show Details
Not to be confused with Lycoris, a distinct group of plants, some toxic.
Liquorice
Illustration Glycyrrhiza glabra0.jpg
Scientific classification edit
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Subfamily: Faboideae
Genus: Glycyrrhiza
Species:
G. glabra
Binomial name
Glycyrrhiza glabra
L.[1]
Synonyms[2][3][4]
Glycyrrhiza brachycarpa Boiss.
Glycyrrhiza glandulifera Waldst. & Kit.
Glycyrrhiza hirsuta Pall.
Glycyrrhiza pallida Boiss.
Glycyrrhiza violacea Boiss
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