Witnessed by: TCM · Unani
Licorice (Glycyrrhiza uralensis), of the Fabaceae family. Perennial legume with pinnate leaves and a long, sweet, woody root; native range: dry steppes and sandy soils of northern China and Mongolia. Globally recognized as gan cao (甘草) in Chinese, mulethi in Hindi, asl-us-sus (أصل السوس) in Arabic, and Chinese licorice, liquorice root, sweet root in English. The part used is root and stolon. A fibrous yellow root, cloyingly sweet with a faint earthy, anise-like undertone.
In this cross-tradition database, we analyze how this substance operates across world medicine systems — tracking its traditional tastes, temperatures, tissue affinities, post-digestive effects, and planetary correspondences across Ayurveda, Unani, and Western herbalism.
LICORICE
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- Licorice
- Scientific name
- Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch.
- Family
- Fabaceae
Form
- Part used
- root and stolon
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- TCM
- sweet
- Unani
- sweet
Temperature
TCM: neutral
Unani: temperate (moist)
convergence: both {witness_count} witnesses find it mild and balanced — a gentle, moistening harmoniser
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- TCM
- Spleen · Stomach · Lung · Heart
- Unani
- lungs · stomach
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- TCM
- tonifies the Spleen and qi, moistens the Lung and stops cough, clears heat and resolves toxicity, moderates spasm and pain, and harmonises the other herbs of a formula
- Unani
- mulattif (demulcent), munzij wa mukhrij-e-balgham (ripens and expels phlegm), muqawwi-e-riya (lung tonic), daf-e-tashannuj (antispasmodic)
Cautions
- Contraindications
- oedema, hypertension and water retention; large or long-term use depletes potassium; damp-heat with fullness; classically incompatible with gan sui, da ji, yuan hua and hai zao in TCM
- Toxicity
- excess or prolonged use causes pseudoaldosteronism — sodium and water retention, raised blood pressure and low potassium
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