Study Indicates Licorice Fights Tooth Decay

Andrea Moore - All Headline News Staff Reporter

Los Angeles, California (AHN) - According to researchers from the University of California at Los Angeles, compounds from the Chinese herb Glycyrrhiza uralensis, which is commonly referred to as licorice root or Chinese licorice appears to be effective in fighting the bacteria that cause tooth decay.

Lead study author Dr. Wenyuan Shi says the ingredients are active antimicrobial compounds, which are also contained in many other Chinese medicinal herbs. It was from a study on 2,000 of these common herbs that the researchers realized the power of licorice.

Shi's team evaluated each of those 2,000 herbs to determine their potential antimicrobial properties, finding some of the strongest activity was in experiments involving licorice root. In test tubes, at least two of the compounds in licorice inhibited the growth of Streptococcus mutans, the primary bacteria responsible for causing cavities.

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