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Black licorice may look and taste like an innocent treat, but this candy has a dark side. On Sept. 23, 2020, it was reported that black licorice was the culprit in the death of a 54-year-old man in Massachusetts. How could this be? Overdosing on licorice sounds more like a twisted tale than a plausible fact. I have a longstanding interest in how chemicals in our food and the environment affect our body and mind. When something seemingly harmless like licorice is implicated in a death, we are reminded of the famous proclamation by Swiss physician Paracelsus, the Father of...

A Massachusetts construction worker’s love of black licorice wound up costing him his life. Eating a bag and a half every day for a few weeks threw his nutrients out of whack and caused the 54-year-old man’s heart to stop, The problem is glycyrrhizic acid, found in black licorice and in many other foods and dietary supplements containing licorice root extract. It can cause dangerously low potassium and imbalances in other minerals, principally electrolytes. Eating as little as 2 ounces of black licorice a day for two weeks could cause a heart rhythm problem, especially for people over the age...

A Massachusetts man died last year from eating an excessive amount of black licorice, doctors said Wednesday. The unusual case was reported in the New England Journal of Medicine, detailing how the man consumed a bag and half of the candy every day for two weeks prior to his death. Licorice contains glycyrrhizic acid, which could deplete potassium levels and contribute to heart rhythm problems, doctors explained.

As it turns out, you really can overdose on candy—or, more precisely, black licorice. Days before the biggest candy eating holiday of the year, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) encourages moderation if you enjoy snacking on the old fashioned favorite. So, if you’re getting your stash ready for Halloween, here’s some advice from FDA: If you’re 40 or older, eating 2 ounces of black licorice a day for at least two weeks could land you in the hospital with an irregular heart rhythm or arrhythmia. FDA experts say black licorice contains the compound glycyrrhizin, which is the sweetening compound...

In case you needed more reason not to eat the worst “candy” in existence, a recent batch of black Red Vines licorice from Union City, Calif. has just been found to contain dangerous amounts of lead. According to a recall issued yesterday, all one-pound bags of black Red Vines labeled “Best Before 020413″ should not be eaten and can be returned to their place of purchase for a full refund, after health officials found the batch to contain up to 13.2 micrograms of lead, or more than twice the state-recommended safe amount.