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  4. There’s a question about Iberogast, which does contain some licorice root. And the amount is not specified as it’s a proprietary blend. I think it’s very likely to be a small amount because of the number of botanicals that are in Iberogast. But the question is, do we consider it similar to licorice root, and is it contraindicated with some diabetes meds, insulin, oral contraceptives, digoxin, etc.

There’s a question about Iberogast, which does contain some licorice root. And the amount is not specified as it’s a proprietary blend. I think it’s very likely to be a small amount because of the number of botanicals that are in Iberogast. But the question is, do we consider it similar to licorice root, and is it contraindicated with some diabetes meds, insulin, oral contraceptives, digoxin, etc.

Chris Kresser:  It’s almost impossible to answer that question because we don’t know exactly what amount of licorice root is in there. But as you recall from the HPA axis presentations in the section where we covered licorice, the amount of licorice and  glycyrrhiza in particular has to be quite high in order to interfere with those medications, and so I would think that Iberogast does not interfere. I know it’s got a very long history of safe use in Europe, but perhaps if your patients are on those medications and they want to take Iberogast, you could monitor them closely, watch for any changes in their labs or symptoms if they’re taking Iberogast.

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