Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) Root, Tea Cut

UZBEKISTAN. Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) Root, Tea Cut, Organic

Common names: Licorice, Sweetroot, Black Sugar Root, Gan Cao, Nankin-kanzō, Alsus, Shush, Lakrids , Zoethout, Mulethi, Atimaduram, Reglisse, Liquirizia, Carra-meille

Family: Fabaceae
 
Licorice is an herbaceous perennial native to southern and central areas of Europe and Asia. It can be found growing wild in waste areas, dry, grassy plains, and near riverbeds or abandoned rice paddies. Currently most cultivated licorice is produced in Greece, Turkey, and Asia. The plant can grow to as much as 40 inches tall in the wild, and is quite notable for its lovely flowers, ranging in color from pale-white to sky-blue or muted purple.

Aside from its medicinal uses, of course, Licorice Root extracts have long been employed to sweeten candies and beverages, and formerly to flavor pipe tobacco. Its component glycyrrhizin is 30-50 times sweeter than sugar.

Licorice Root has a long history of use in herbal medicine, with applications dating back to the ancient Greeks, Egyptians, and classical Indian and Chinese periods. It is considered demulcent, expectorant, tonifying, and carminative, and is also known for mild analgesic, anti-tumor, antioxidant, and antipyretic properties.

In Chinese medicine, and the related traditions in Japan and Korea, Licorice Root is one of the most commonly used ingredients. It features in a large number of different herbal preparations as a “guide drug,” enhancing the effects of the other herbs in formulas. In Ayurvedic and Unani medicine, Licorice Root is said to be tonifying and stimulating, and is often prescribed in formulas as a carminative, brain tonic, anti-hypotensive, or expectorant ingredient. Other preparations including Licorice Root have been used to treat malaria, snakebite, and tremors.

While the traditional uses of Licorice Root still comprise the bulk of its current applications, new studies have brought out interesting findings regarding its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and adrenal-stimulating effects. Some doctors believe that Licorice may be helpful in the management of chronic fatigue syndrome.

Licorice Root is an ingredient in our Aller-Geez! Tea, Em's Herbal Tea, Happy Tract Tea, Open Air Tea, Tummy Tea, and Winter Defense Tea blends.


These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.