Licorice

Licorice!

🌿 Licorice is a member of the pea family. It grows wild in southern Europe and Asia. It’s mostly grown for it’s rhizomes and roots.

🌿 Licorice is fifty times sweeter than sugar, but generally not used as a sweetener because of it’s strong flavor.

🌿 Licorice can be purchased as the whole dried root, sliced, or powdered.

🌿 When my children were small, they were given four or five inch pieces of licorice root at their school’s Halloween festival, as a healthy, sweet treat. They enjoyed chewing on it for weeks. Licorice root cleanses the mouth and teeth and arrests tooth decay because of it’s germicidal action.

🌿 More recently, when my father-in-law was visiting, he was experiencing stomach issues, most likely due to the medications he is taking. As I was researching a different article, I came across a recommendation of a licorice extract, glycyrrhizin, to promote the formation of the mucous layer in the stomach and intestines, thus easing the discomfort caused by the medications.

🌿 Please note that the extract I found for him, was specially formulated, because people with cardiac problems and hypertension should avoid significant quantities of the licorice extract, this is because in excess, it may cause water retention and raise blood pressure. There are formulations available that remove that property.

🌿 Licorice root also promotes salivation and increases secretions in the gastrointestinal tract, which helps digestion, especially when taken before meals.

🌿 Licorice root is known to improve circulation and cleanse the blood.

🌿 It’s also good for hypoglycemia, the removal of age spots, and the removal of drugs from the body.

---

🌿 Some research indicates that licorice may counteract various viruses, including herpes simplex I and HIV.

🌿 Licorice tea is a mild laxative and a natural expectorant and decongestant. It also aids digestion, helps the liver discharge toxins, and strengthens both the heart and circulatory system.

🌿 Septic or non healing wounds can be healed by the application of licorice tea or licorice ghee.

Have you ever taken advantage of the healing properties of licorice? How about chewing on licorice root as a child or as an adult? I must confess, chewing on licorice root seems perfect for a long car drive, to freshen the mouth!