Licorice Root May Combat Diabetes

picture of licorice root

Already highly regarded as a medicinal plant, licorice root may soon add anti-diabetic effects to its repertoire of healing powers.

Licorice root contains amorfrutins, which reduce blood sugar, are anti-inflammatory, and are well tolerated by users, according to researchers at Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics in Berlin. In addition, the substances help prevent fatty liver, a common disease caused by excessively fat-rich diets.

While adding licorice to one’s diet may be a sweet temptation, researchers caution that this is not a cure for diabetes; rather, the amorfrutins must be extracted and produced in appropriate concentrations in order to be beneficial.

Source: Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, www.mpg.de.