the.com/licorice
the candy that splits a room like politics and spikes blood pressure like a threat
means A chewy, intensely flavored candy made from the sweet extract of the licorice plant's root, available in black or red varieties that people tend to love or hate.
from From the Greek 'glykyrrhiza,' literally 'sweet root' — 'glykys' (sweet) plus 'rhiza' (root), the same 'rhiza' you meet in 'rhizome.' Latin softened it to 'liquiritia,' and somewhere along the way folk ears heard 'liquor' in that first syllable, nudging the spelling toward the drink. By the time it reached Old French and then English, the sweet Greek root had been thoroughly disguised — but it's still there, growing underground in the word as in the soil.
- blood pressure
- Real licorice can dangerously raise it
- sweet power
- Glycyrrhizin is 50 times sweeter than sugar
- fatal dose
- A man died from eating too much
- red imposter
- Most red licorice contains zero licorice
- ancient roots
- Found stashed in King Tut's tomb
twizzlers — american licorice candy brand, produced by hershey since 1929, containing no actual licorice root
haribo — german confectionery company founded 1920, famous for licorice gummies like lakritz products across europe
glycyrrhiza glabra — the actual licorice plant species native to west asia, root used medicinally and in candy for 4,000 years