Licorice Root is a relatively well-known herb that possesses many well-documented health benefits. It is known for its anti-fungal, antiviral, and antibacterial qualities as well as being a good anti-inflammatory for the lungs, particularly for allergic asthma, as well as great support for the adrenal glands and the liver. In Chinese medicine, it is added to many combinations of herbal formulas and is known as what they call a “guide drug”. This is because Licorice is known for its ability to enhance the effectiveness of the herbal formula that it is added to. Especially because of its positive effects on the liver, which is important in any herbal treatment program.
Benefits for the liver and adrenals:
Licorice root contains flavonoids which are potent antioxidants that are found in a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, and plants. Studies show that the flavonoids found in Licorice Root have protective qualities for the liver and inhibits the breakdown of cortisol in the liver.
What is Cortisol?
Cortisol is one of the major hormones that is produced by the adrenal glands. Cortisol is one of over 50 hormones that the adrenal glands produce (other major hormones the adrenals produce include DHA, 40% of estrogen and progesterone in women, and 40% of Testosterone in men). Cortisol is secreted by the adrenal glands as a response to stressful situations. When a person experiences chronic stress, the adrenals are constantly producing cortisol. Eventually, the adrenal glands are thought to become overworked to the point that they can no longer produce adequate levels of cortisol to manage stress. This can eventually lead to Adrenal Fatigue.
What are Adrenal Fatigue symptoms?
Adrenal Fatigue is thought to cause all sorts of undesirable symptoms including poor stress response, mood swings, brain fog, autoimmune diseases, low energy with frequent crashes throughout the day, weight gain from cravings for sweet and salty foods, overuse of caffeine and other stimulants, depression, and loss of libido. This is one of the many reasons why managing stress is important for overall health and wellness and supplementing with Licorice Root is a great way to help to do this.
Protective for the digestive tract:
Licorice Root is known for its protective qualities for the digestive tract. Studies show that is effective for protecting the stomach from ulcers, by producing stomach mucous that protects the lining of the stomach from stomach acids. There are also studies that show that the flavonoids contained in Licorice Root and actually kill H-pylori, which is the bacteria that is known to be responsible for most stomach ulcers and stomach inflammation.
Benefits for Healthy Lungs
Licorice helps the lungs by producing healthy mucous. It may seem counter-intuitive to think that producing mucous can actually help the lungs by healthy mucous in the body is really important to keeping everything protected and properly lubricated. When mucous gets overproduced and stuck for a prolonged period of time, this is when problems start happening. Licorice helps to break up the old mucous that is stuck in the lungs and get it out and replaces it with new healthy mucous.
Licorice Root is an ingredient in two of Desert Willow Botanicals formulas including the AL-R-G Formula, and the Respiratory Formula and now that we have delved a little deeper into the many benefits of this herb, hopefully, there is a better understanding of why!
References:
https://www.endocrineweb.com/conditions/adrenal-disorders/adrenal-fatigue
https://www.besthealthmag.ca/best-you/home-remedies/natural-health-remedy-the-benefits-of-licorice-root/
https://www.botanicalmedicine.org/licorice-root-antiviral-antimicrobial-antifungal/