World of the Bizarre

Man dies after eating too much black licorice

By T.K. Randall
September 27, 2020

Image: AI-generated (Midjourney) Enjoyed around the world, licorice is made from the root of the plant Glycyrrhiza glabra which also happens to contain glycyrrhizic acid - a substance known to cause a number of side-effects if consumed in large quantities including hypertension, hypokalemia and even renal failure.

These risks were brought into sharp focus this week when a 54-year-old construction worker in the United States actually collapsed and died after suffering a cardiac arrest attributed to his penchant for eating one-and-a-half bags of licorice every single day.

Of particular note was the fact that he had recently switched his habit from eating red licorice twists to black ones just a few weeks beforehand, presumably increasing his glycyrrhizic acid intake.He was deemed to have suffered from hypokalemia - which is the name for the condition where the levels of potassium in a person's blood become dangerously low.

"Further investigation revealed a recent change to a liquorice-containing candy as the likely cause of his hypokalemia," wrote Dr Andrew L Lundquist.

So while licorice is certainly safe to eat in moderation - too much of it can literally kill you.

Source: BBC News

Tags: Licorice