"licorice" news and stories

I recently read a short news article about an Ohio couple that used black licorice candy to induce labor. According to a pharmacist quoted in the piece, there are certain chemicals in licorice that cause the uterus to contract. The couple claims it worked for them.

Browsing around a little more, I found studies on the effects of glycyrrhizin, the main component of licorice root (right) and the reason for its sweet taste. Several studies published in the American Journal of Epidemiology associated glycyrrhizin with earlier (preterm) delivery, sometimes by as much as two weeks. One of the studies investigated birth weight as well, and found that even 500 mg of glycyrrhizin per week had no adverse effects on birth weight or other birth outcome. The babies were no lighter, just more likely to be born earlier.