Liquorice

Licorice naked or a liquorice – the perennial herbaceous plant in a wild look growing on open spaces of Italy, France, the North Caucasus, Siberia, the Southeast countries of Europe, North Africa, and also the Western and Central Asia.

The liquorice belongs to the sort Licorice, family Bean, grows preferably on firm chernozemisty, clay, sandy and saltish soils. At a plant a thick ligneous rhizome, several upright stalks covered with odd-pinnate leaves. Plant fruits a liquorice – brown color leathery beans with seeds. Time of blossoming of a glycyrrhiza – the period from June to August, maturing of fruits falls on August-September.

The liquorice is widely used in medicine, the food and technical industry, and also as the foam-forming agent in production of fire extinguishers. Many are familiar with liquorice candies – not only tasty, but also very useful sweets.

Plant liquorice: properties

To contain in roots and rhizomes of a plant carbohydrates and related connections – glucose, fructose, sucrose and a maltose. The liquorice is rich on:

• Starch – to 34%;
• Cellulose – to 30%;
• Pectinaceous substances;
• Organic acids – lemon, amber, apple, fumaric and wine;
• Essential oils;
• Triterpenoida;
• Pitches;
• Steroids;
• Fenolkarbonovy acids and their derivatives;
• Coumarins;
• Tannins – from 8,3 to 4,2%;
• Flavonoids;
• The highest aliphatic hydrocarbons;
• Alcohols;
• Higher fatty acids;
• Alkaloids.

To contain in a land part of a plant polysaccharides, carbohydrates, organic acids, saponins, lipids, nitrogen-containing connections, vitamins, flavonoids, tannins, coumarins, глицэстрон, essential oil and triterpenoida. Aromatic compounds, alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, terpenoids, the highest aliphatic hydrocarbons and ethers of higher fatty acids are a part of essential oil of a liquorice.

Useful properties of a liquorice for health of the person are caused by the fact that in a large number to contain in it group B vitamins. Therefore the use of a liquorice promotes adjustment of energy balance and the correct work of all bodies and systems of an organism, in particular a nervous system, promotes protein synthesis and production of insulin, and also improves metabolism.

Medicinal properties of a liquorice were known 3000 years ago in China, the root of a plant is natural cough remedy, and also renders antiulcerous, antiinflammatory, expectorant and spasmolytic action.

Use of a plant liquorice

In the industry the plant is applied as foam-forming substance, namely in metallurgy to foam flotation and as a part of mixes for filling of fire extinguishers. The liquorice is used at production of shoe polish, ink and ink, and also in the textile industry for fixing of paints.

On open spaces of Central Asia and the Caucasus do broth which paint a felt and wool of roots of a liquorice. Japan uses it by production of nicotine free substitute cigarettes, and world tobacco corporations add it for giving of taste and pleasant aroma to smoking, chewing and snuff tobacco. Kyrgyzstan uses a liquorice as a tea substitute. In Ancient China, Tibet, Assyria, Egypt and Shumeriya roots of a glycyrrhiza used as medicine from many diseases.

In Denmark and other Scandinavian countries from a liquorice prepare various sweets. On shelves of confectionery shops it is possible to find liquorice candies of various sizes and color, lollipops, salty and sweet pastils, chocolate, fruit jelly, chewing gums, and also soft drinks in these countries. Here it is possible to meet not only sweet liquorice candies, but also salty, acute with chili pepper, and also with taste of chloride ammonium.

Also in Denmark sell barley and liquorice beer, liquorice and menthol and liquorice шот on vodka. Liquorice candies with elder aroma of flowers which not only have unusual taste and aroma enjoy wide popularity, but also are very useful.

In the food industry roots and rhizomes of a plant apply to the best knocking down of ovalbumins, add to extracts and syrups, and also use as a substitute of sugar and frother in beer, soft drinks, kvass and tonics.

Also the liquorice is used by production of cocoa, coffee, halvah, kissels, a fruit candy, compotes, marinades, caramel, flour products and chocolate, at a cabbage fermentation, wetting of apples and when processing fish. The plant is added to long leaf and green tea, thereby receiving sweet drink with unusual taste and aroma.

In medicine liquorice powder is used for creation of a basis of tablets and for improvement of a smell and taste of medicines. As roots of a glycyrrhiza contain glycyrrhizic acid, it can be used a sick diabetes mellitus.

In nonconventional medicine the liquorice is used for treatment of impotence, cholelithiasis, rhinitis, nephrite, an idiopathic hypertensia, stenocardia, a leprosy, prostatitis and adenoma of a prostate, plant decoction on milk is applied at whooping cough and at treatment of a lymphogranulomatosis.

Liquorice or licorice – a plant eurysynusic worldwide which is applied in the industry, cookery and medicine. It is rich in vitamins, flavonoids, carbons, essential oil, fructose, alkaloids and alcohols, than its positive impact on health of the person is caused.