Pregnant women may find liquorice harmful

Washington: All the women who are currently going through the process of pregnancy or planning to have a child in the near future should be cautious of consuming large amount of liquorice during pregnancy.

A Finnish study proves, youth who were exposed to larger amount of liquorice in the womb performed less than others in cognitive reasoning tests done by the psychologist.

Those exposed also performed less in memory measuring capacity tasks and they also had Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)-related problems more than others. The study report was published in the American Journal of Epidemiology.

The author of the article is Academy Professor Katri Raikkonen from the University of Helsinki. The study carried out by University of Helsinki, the National Institute for Health and Welfare and the Uusimaa hospital districts equated 378 youth of about 13 years whose mother had consumed large amounts or little/no liquorice during pregnancy.

In the research, a large amount was explicated over as over 500 mg and little/no as 249 mg glycyrrhizin per week.
It is suggested that all the women who are pregnant and women planning pregnancy should be told about the harmful effects of the products containing glycyrrhizin on the foetus.

In Finland, this has already become a reality. In January 2016, the National Institute for Health and Welfare published food recommendations for families with children, in which liquorice was placed in the 'not recommended' category for pregnant women.

But, occasional consumption of small amounts such as a portion of liquorice ice cream or sweets is not dangerous. Glycyrrhizin is one of the main factors that affect the development of a foetus. But it is impossible to say whether it was glycyrrhizin expressly that affected the development of a certain individual.

Glycyrrhizin intensifies the effects of stress hormone cortisol by inhibiting the enzyme that inactivates cortisol, while cortisol is essential to the development of a foetus.

Short term effects of glycyrrhizin have been seen from a long time, but such long-lasting effects on the foetus have not been proven before.