Licorice (Yashtimadhu) Extract: Glycyrrhizin and Dose Limits
Licorice is the botanical where a recognised daily intake limit genuinely constrains the formulation. Glycyrrhizin content is the parameter that matters. Specify it, calculate the daily delivery, and obtain professional advice.
Why Licorice Needs Attention
This guide is for brand owners sourcing licorice, known as yashtimadhu or mulethi, in India.
Licorice root contains glycyrrhizin, which is both responsible for its sweetness and the constituent that carries dose-related considerations. Regular intake above certain levels has recognised effects, which is why guidance on daily glycyrrhizin intake exists in various jurisdictions.
That makes licorice different from most botanicals in a practical sense. For many herbs the dose question is open and advisory; for licorice there are specific intake figures that professional advisers will refer to, and your formulation has to be set against them.
The implication is that glycyrrhizin content must be specified and measured, and the daily delivery from your product calculated. Buying licorice extract without a glycyrrhizin specification means you cannot do that calculation at all.
Deglycyrrhizinated Licorice
An option worth understanding.
Deglycyrrhizinated licorice, usually written DGL, is licorice material from which most of the glycyrrhizin has been removed. It is used specifically to reduce the glycyrrhizin-related dose constraint while retaining other components of the root.
If your formulation needs licorice at a level that would exceed the glycyrrhizin intake considerations, DGL is the route to look at. Specify the residual glycyrrhizin maximum rather than relying on the DGL label alone, because the degree of removal varies between materials.
Note also that DGL and standard licorice extract are not interchangeable in taste or in composition, so a reformulation from one to the other needs sensory and stability reassessment rather than a straight substitution.
Which is appropriate for your product is a formulation and regulatory question, and worth putting to a professional adviser rather than deciding on cost.
Specification Points
What must be in the purchase specification.
| Element | What to Specify |
|---|---|
| Botanical identity | Species confirmed, since several are traded as licorice |
| Part used | Root |
| Form | Powder or extract, with extraction ratio |
| Glycyrrhizin content | Percentage with tolerance, or maximum for DGL |
| Assay method | Named |
| Extraction solvent | Named, with residual limits |
| Moisture | Maximum |
| Microbial limits | Per batch with pathogens |
| Heavy metals | Limits per batch |
| Pesticide residues | Per sourcing and market |
| Certificate of analysis | Per batch, with glycyrrhizin result and method |
Glycyrrhizin percentage with a tolerance range and a named method is the specification line that makes this material controllable. A supplier quoting only an extraction ratio has not told you what you need.
Calculating Daily Delivery
The calculation that drives the formulation.
- Take the extract weight per serving.
- Multiply by the glycyrrhizin percentage to get glycyrrhizin per serving.
- Multiply by the number of servings in your recommended daily intake.
- Compare that figure against the intake guidance your professional adviser identifies.
- Include glycyrrhizin from any other ingredient in the formulation, since licorice appears in blends.
- Account for the upper end of your specification tolerance, not the midpoint.
- Reconsider the formulation if the figure is close to or above the guidance.
- Consider DGL where the level is the constraint.
- Record the calculation, since it is the basis for your dose decision.
Labelling and Warnings
Set with professional advice.
Dose Statement
Clear, with a prominent instruction not to exceed the recommended daily intake.
Duration of Use
Guidance on continuous use duration may be advised for this ingredient. Take advice on wording.
Who Should Avoid
As advised, typically including pregnancy, breastfeeding, those with certain conditions and those on medication.
Glycyrrhizin Content
Consider declaring it, since it is the parameter a professional or informed consumer would want.
The duration-of-use point is specific to this ingredient and often omitted. Where professional advice indicates guidance on continuous use, include it rather than leaving the consumer to assume indefinite use is intended.
Claim Limits
Narrow.
A food-framework supplement cannot claim to treat, cure or prevent any condition. That excludes the digestive, respiratory, throat and ulcer-related claims commonly associated with licorice.
Claims about acidity, cough, sore throat or gastric comfort are either disease claims or physiological claims requiring substantiation and professional advice on permitted wording. Traditional use literature does not substantiate a claim about your product.
Marketing that positions licorice as a remedy or as an alternative to medication is making a therapeutic claim and should be avoided.
What remains available: accurate description, composition and standardisation statements, and traditional-use context only where permitted for your framework and worded as advised.
Sourcing Checklist
Complete before a first order.
- Confirm botanical identity and that the part used is root.
- Specify glycyrrhizin percentage with tolerance, and the assay method.
- For DGL, specify a residual glycyrrhizin maximum rather than relying on the label.
- Calculate glycyrrhizin delivered per recommended daily intake.
- Include glycyrrhizin from every ingredient in a blend.
- Use the upper end of the tolerance in the calculation.
- Obtain professional advice on whether that level is appropriate.
- Consider DGL if the glycyrrhizin level is the constraint.
- Reassess taste and stability if switching between DGL and standard extract.
- Specify solvent with residual limits, and moisture maximum.
- Agree microbial, heavy metal and pesticide limits per batch.
- Require certificates of analysis with glycyrrhizin results and methods named.
- Include a clear dose statement and do-not-exceed instruction.
- Take advice on duration-of-use guidance and include it.
- Include who-should-avoid warnings as advised.
- Write a claim set excluding acidity, throat, cough and ulcer claims.
- Record the glycyrrhizin calculation as the basis for your dose decision.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why does licorice need special dose attention?
Because it contains glycyrrhizin, which carries dose-related considerations, and guidance on daily glycyrrhizin intake exists in various jurisdictions. Unlike most botanicals, there are specific intake figures your formulation has to be set against.
What must I specify when buying licorice extract?
Glycyrrhizin percentage with a tolerance range and a named assay method, alongside identity, part used and extraction ratio. A supplier quoting only an extraction ratio has not told you what you need to calculate daily delivery.
What is DGL?
Deglycyrrhizinated licorice, from which most glycyrrhizin has been removed to reduce the dose constraint. Specify a residual glycyrrhizin maximum rather than relying on the DGL label, since the degree of removal varies between materials.
How do I calculate daily delivery?
Extract weight per serving multiplied by glycyrrhizin percentage, multiplied by servings per day, using the upper end of your specification tolerance and including glycyrrhizin from every ingredient in a blend. Then compare against the guidance your adviser identifies.
Can I claim licorice helps acidity or sore throat?
No. Those are disease or physiological claims requiring substantiation and professional advice on wording, and a food-framework supplement cannot claim to treat, cure or prevent any condition. Traditional use literature does not substantiate a claim about your product.