Economic Importance

The beneficial effects of liquorice in treating chills, colds, and coughs have been fully discussed in Ayurveda, as well as in the texts of ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans. The plant has been prescribed for dropsy during the period of famous Hippocrates. The reason being that it was quite helpful as thirst-quenching drugs (Biondi et al. in J Nat Prod 68:1099–1102, 2005; Mamedov and Egamberdieva in Herbals and human health-phytochemistry. Springer Nature Publishers, 41 pp, 2017). No doubt, the clinical use of liquorice in modern medicine started around 1930; Pedanios Dioscorides of Anazarba (Adana), first century AD-Father of Pharmacists, mentions that it is highly effective in the treatment of stomach and intestinal ulcers. In Ayurveda, people in ancient Hindu culture have used it for improving sexual vigor.