Too Much Candy: Man Dies From Eating Bags of Black Licorice

[Hazelelponi]

There are actually people that have eating disorders, so that would be my best guess about what was happening. My brother has a friend that's diabetic that will only eat a limited variety of fast foods, and it's killing him slowly. It's obvious he has an eating disorder, but it isn't something he's sought treatment for.

Good point in that...

Besides, in thinking about it, perhaps his eating that much candy like that was his body doing like mine in craving dirt when I develop a serious and dangerous drop in iron levels...

Same concept I guess..

Totally sad though, especially now when many human beings have so much access to good and nutritional foods...

 

[iluvatar5150]

I read somewhere that licorice has the most sugar of any candy,. Black licorice is my favorite. They have a liquor that smells and tastes like licorice. Probably anise.

Jagermeister is in that family, too.

Where do you buy anise or fennel? I never see it in stores. And even licorice sticks?

Anise is in the spice aisle. Fennel is in the produce - IME, usually somewhere near the parsley and cilantro. I'd imagine every grocery store would have anise, but I wouldn't be surprised if fennel wasn't stocked everywhere or if they a place does carry it, they don't keep much on hand and don't hurry to restock it.

Man, I haven't had braised fennel in a while. I should see if I can do that this weekend.

 

[FireDragon76]

Good point in that...

Besides, in thinking about it, perhaps his eating that much candy like that was his body doing like mine in craving dirt when I develop a serious and dangerous drop in iron levels...

Same concept I guess..

Totally sad though, especially now when many human beings have so much access to good and nutritional foods...

My brother's friend had what sounds like what I would consider an odd home environment growing up, so it's possible he never learned how to eat in the first place. Also, a phenomenon I have noticed is that some people engage in a great deal of what could be called "emotional eating". Add those two together, and it's not hard to understand how some people could eat very strange things.

Also, another thing to consider is that some people have developmental disorders and it's not uncommon for those people to eat a very narrow range of foods. The famous animal behaviorist, Temple Grandin, for instance, at one time subsisted on a diet of mostly jello. Her unusual food choices were no doubt influenced by her autism, because rigid, repetitive patterns of behavior, combined with absorbtion in a narrow range of activities, are not rare in people with autistic regression.

 

[Tiburon]

Doctors say a Massachusetts construction worker’s love of black licorice wound up costing him his life.

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, doctors reported Wednesday.

https://www.usnews.com/news/health-...y-man-dies-from-eating-bags-of-black-licorice

Was it salty licorice? Do Americans eat salty licorice?

 

[FireDragon76]

Jagermeister is in that family, too.

That's a kind of bitters. I believe it has gentian as the main flavoring, as do most bitters. Gentian is hot and bitter, and isn't naturally sweet.

I used to buy Underburg, another German bitters, and used it medicinally. It's so low in alcohol, and so high in bitter flavorings, that it's not taxed like liquor.

 

[Tiburon]

That's a kind of bitters. I believe it has gentian as the main flavoring, as do most bitters. Gentian is hot and bitter, and isn't naturally sweet.

I used to buy Underburg, another German bitters, and used it medicinally. It's so low in alcohol, and so high in bitter flavorings, that it's not taxed like liquor.

I just looked at a website for Underburg. It says it's 44% alcohol. I guess that's a different one.

 

[Nithavela]

Yes that is exactly what the article says: that amount of candy threw his nutrients out of whack, meaning he wasn't getting the correct nutrients and it was severe enough to kill him.

It's not that he was not getting enough nutrients. A component of the candy actively removed some of the nutrients from his system.

 

[Nithavela]

Was it salty licorice? Do Americans eat salty licorice?

Wouldn't surprise me. They even eat salty popcorn.

 

[comana]

Wouldn't surprise me. They even eat salty popcorn.

Well what good is popcorn if not salted and buttered? As to licorice, I have never heard of salted licorice. As I see it, licorice is best tossed in the garbage salted or not.

 

[Goonie]

Yes that is exactly what the article says: that amount of candy threw his nutrients out of whack, meaning he wasn't getting the correct nutrients and it was severe enough to kill him.

Thing is, our bodies fight such lack of nutrients by giving us severe cravings for the things our bodies are lacking.

When I become too anemic my body goes into serious cravings for things like liver, which I can sit and eat by the pound in a severe enough anemia episode... I've had orange juice cravings so bad it was the only thing I drank for days...

Whenever our bodies are lacking in something, our bodies scream at us to get that imbalance fixed... it is to us to listen without hesitation.

For instance, I don't wait until I crave raw meat or dirt due to anemia, I eat liver when I first start craving it, and it keeps my iron up. Our bodies do tell us what we need. It's kind of amazing really.

So my question is how come this guy ignored every warning sign his body had to be giving him?

Man dies after eating bag of licorice every day for a few weeks

'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 of 40, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warns.'

 

[Mayzoo]

It is not the sugar that is the issue. Licorice causes an increase in sodium and a depletion in potassium. Potassium is critical to proper cardiac function. And, it really does not take a lot of licorice for this to become a serious issue. More than 2 ounces a day for greater than 2 weeks can lead to complications.

Glycyrrhetic acid, the active metabolite in licorice, inhibits the enzyme 11-ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase enzyme type 2 with a resultant cortisol-induced mineralocorticoid effect and the tendency towards the elevation of sodium and reduction of potassium levels.

Licorice abuse: time to send a warning message

 

[Pommer]

It is not the sugar that is the issue. Licorice causes an increase in sodium and a depletion in potassium. Potassium is critical to proper cardiac function. And, it really does not take a lot of licorice for this to become a serious issue. More than 2 ounces a day for greater than 2 weeks can lead to complications.

Glycyrrhetic acid, the active metabolite in licorice, inhibits the enzyme 11-ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase enzyme type 2 with a resultant cortisol-induced mineralocorticoid effect and the tendency towards the elevation of sodium and reduction of potassium levels.

Licorice abuse: time to send a warning message

[Note to self: Eat some broccoli before consuming Crows®, your K+ is low enough!]

 

[FireDragon76]

It is not the sugar that is the issue. Licorice causes an increase in sodium and a depletion in potassium.

Only if the licorice has not been deglycyrrhizinated.

Most candy in the US labelled "licorice" is actually flavored with anise and contains little or no real licorice. It's safe in moderation. Of course, if you ate only candy, you could die from kwashiorkor, a a rare (in the US) protein deficiency wasting disease that leads to heart failure.

 

[sunshineforJesus]

I love Black Licorice but only eat it sometimes.

 

[coffee4u]

O_O I love black liquorice too. I wonder how big the bag was?

Okay, so 2 ounces is 56grams. The normal bag here is 300grams. 56 grams isn't that much at all.