[Perverse effects of an apparently harmless habit...].

We report the case of a 47-year old woman with a long history of arterial hypertension. Because of a recent difficulty to control blood pressure values accompanied by hypokalaemia, a thorough investigation was performed, showing low renin and aldosterone blood levels and high urinary potassium levels. Repeated questioning revealed that the patient regularly consumed non-negligible quantities of liquorice-flavored chewing-gun. The physiopathogenic mechanisms of action of liquorice are reviewed.