Birth outcome in relation to licorice consumption during pregnancy

A role for glucocorticoids is suspected in the etiology of low birth weight . The authors tested whether maternal consumption of glycyrrhizin (an inhib itor of cortisol metabolism) in licorice affects birth weight in humans. A sample of 1,049 Finnish women and their healthy singleton infants was studi ed in 1998. Glycyrrhizin intake was calculated from detailed questionnaires on licorice consumption. Glycyrrhizin exposure was grouped into three leve ls: low (<250 mg/week; n = 751), moderate (250-499 mg/week; n = 145), and h eavy (<greater than or equal to>500 mg/week; n = 110). Birth weight and ges tational age (from ultrasound measurements) were obtained from hospital rec ords. Babies with heavy exposure to glycyrrhizin were not significantly lig hter at birth, but they were significantly more likely to be born earlier: The odds ratio for being born before 38 weeks' gestation was 2.5 (95% confi dence interval: 1.1, 5.5; p = 0.03). Although the effect of heavy glycyrrhi zin intake on mean duration of gestation was small (2.52 days) when express ed as an effect on the mean, this shift to the left of the distribution of duration of gestation was sufficient to double the risk of being born befor e 38 weeks. The association remained in multivariate analyses. In conclusio n, heavy glycyrrhizin exposure during pregnancy did not significantly affec t birth weight or maternal blood pressure, but it was significantly associa ted with lower gestational age.