{"product_id":"les-bonbons-reglisse","title":"Los Caramelos de Regaliz","description":"\u003cp\u003eOrganic liquorice rolled into small snail spirals, made in France by Sophie M in the brand's 80 g clip-top tin. Vegan, and with \u003cstrong\u003eno artificial colouring\u003c\/strong\u003e — which is why the black is a shade softer than the industrial version.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eRead this before buying: liquorice is not an ordinary sweet\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is the most important thing on the page, and it is very rarely printed properly.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eReal liquorice root contains \u003cstrong\u003eglycyrrhizin\u003c\/strong\u003e (glycyrrhizic acid), and glycyrrhizin has a genuine pharmacological effect on the body: it interferes with an enzyme in the kidney and produces a state doctors call \u003cstrong\u003epseudohyperaldosteronism\u003c\/strong\u003e. In plain terms, eaten regularly and in quantity it \u003cstrong\u003eraises blood pressure, drives potassium down, and causes the body to hold on to salt and water.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt the low end that means puffiness and slightly higher blood pressure. At the serious end, low potassium causes muscle weakness and can disturb heart rhythm — there are published case reports of hospital admissions, and at least one widely reported death, from sustained heavy liquorice eating.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is not a scare. It is the reason European law requires confectionery above a certain glycyrrhizin content to state \u003cem\u003e“contains liquorice”\u003c\/em\u003e, and above a higher threshold to add \u003cem\u003e“people suffering from hypertension should avoid excessive consumption”\u003c\/em\u003e. The European Union's scientific committee suggested that regular intake should stay \u003cstrong\u003ebelow about 100 mg of glycyrrhizin a day\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWhat that means in practice\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eAn occasional tin is not a problem\u003c\/strong\u003e for a healthy adult. Eating liquorice every day for weeks is a different thing.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDo not eat it regularly if you have high blood pressure, heart disease or kidney disease\u003c\/strong\u003e, or if you have been told your potassium runs low.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eTake particular care if you take\u003c\/strong\u003e a diuretic (“water tablet”), a corticosteroid, digoxin, or blood pressure medication. Low potassium is exactly what makes digoxin dangerous, and liquorice works directly against antihypertensives.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eAvoid it in pregnancy.\u003c\/strong\u003e Studies from Finland — where liquorice consumption is high enough to study — have linked heavy liquorice intake in pregnancy to shorter gestation and to differences in children's later cognitive and behavioural outcomes. National guidance in several countries advises pregnant women to avoid it.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSymptoms to notice:\u003c\/strong\u003e unusual swelling in the ankles or face, headaches, muscle weakness or cramps, or a racing heart. Stop and see a doctor.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCheck your tin for the glycyrrhizin statement. If you eat a lot of liquorice, it is worth mentioning to your GP the next time your blood pressure is taken.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWhat liquorice actually is\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe root of \u003cem\u003eGlycyrrhiza glabra\u003c\/em\u003e, a legume grown around the Mediterranean and in western Asia. The name means “sweet root” in Greek, and it is earned: \u003cstrong\u003eglycyrrhizin is roughly fifty times sweeter than sugar\u003c\/strong\u003e, but with a slow, lingering, faintly bitter sweetness completely unlike sucrose. That strange quality is why liquorice divides people so absolutely.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe taste people identify as “liquorice” is largely \u003cstrong\u003eanethole\u003c\/strong\u003e, the same aromatic compound found in aniseed and fennel — which is why those three are so often confused, and why some “liquorice” sweets contain no liquorice at all.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWhy these are a softer black\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBecause there is no colouring in them. Industrial liquorice is usually blackened with vegetable carbon or synthetic colour to get that dense, uniform, almost light-absorbing black. \u003cstrong\u003eOrganic certification does not permit synthetic colours\u003c\/strong\u003e, so what you see is the colour of the ingredients — dark brown-black rather than jet.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe spirals are the traditional French shape: liquorice rolled into a snail, undone and eaten as a ribbon by anyone under about ten.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003ePractical notes\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eVegan and organic. It is still a sweet — sugar, and chewy sugar at that, which clings to teeth. Not last thing at night.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSmall children:\u003c\/strong\u003e a rolled spiral is a choking hazard for the very young, and the glycyrrhizin caution applies more strongly to a small body. Give a little, not a lot.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eStorage\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCool, dry, clip closed. Liquorice hardens as it dries out and goes tacky in humidity.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Sophie m","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56105118204228,"sku":null,"price":4.39,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0948\/5772\/4228\/files\/les-bonbons-reglisse-3781104.png?v=1787323760","url":"https:\/\/soverde.pt\/es\/products\/les-bonbons-reglisse","provider":"Só Verde","version":"1.0","type":"link"}