How Much DGL Should You Take Per Day?

Most DGL (deglycyrrhizinated licorice) supplements on the market suggest somewhere between 380 mg and 760 mg taken two to three times daily, usually chewed before meals. But that range only applies to traditional DGL chewable tablets. Standardized licorice-root extracts tested in clinical trials have used dramatically lower doses, sometimes as little as 75 mg twice a day, and produced measurable results. The “right” daily amount depends heavily on which form of DGL you’re using and what you’re using it for.

Why DGL Doses Vary So Widely

DGL is not a single standardized product. It is a category of licorice preparations that have had most or all of the compound glycyrrhizin removed. Glycyrrhizin is the component responsible for licorice’s well-known side effects on blood pressure and potassium levels, and stripping it out is what makes DGL safer for regular use.¹ Beyond that shared feature, DGL products differ enormously in how concentrated they are, which active compounds they retain, and how much raw plant material each milligram represents.

Traditional DGL chewable tablets are relatively crude preparations. They contain a broad spectrum of licorice compounds at modest concentrations, so you need higher doses to get a meaningful amount of the active ingredients. Newer standardized extracts concentrate specific flavonoids and other bioactives, allowing much smaller doses to deliver a comparable or even greater amount of the compounds thought to be responsible for DGL’s gut-protective effects. A 75 mg capsule of a concentrated, flavonoid-rich extract is not the same thing as a 75 mg fragment of a traditional DGL tablet, and confusing the two is one of the most common mistakes people make when reading DGL dosing information.

Doses Tested in Gastric Ulcer Trials

The oldest and most straightforward clinical evidence for DGL comes from gastric ulcer research. In a double-blind trial of patients with gastric ulcers, the DGL dose was 760 mg three times daily, giving a total daily intake of 2,280 mg. Treatment lasted for two consecutive four-week periods.² That trial used a traditional-style licorice extract, which is why the numbers are so much higher than what you’ll see on some modern supplement labels.

This 760 mg three-times-daily figure is roughly where most traditional DGL chewable tablet recommendations land. Supplement labels commonly suggest one or two 380 mg tablets chewed 20 minutes before meals, two or three times a day. That puts the daily range at about 760 mg on the low end and 2,280 mg on the high end, depending on how many meals you take it with. The chewing part matters: DGL in tablet form is designed to mix with saliva before reaching the stomach, which is thought to help it coat the mucosal lining more effectively.

Doses for Functional Dyspepsia

Functional dyspepsia, the chronic indigestion that shows up without any visible ulcer or structural cause, has been tested with a much lower dose using a concentrated licorice extract. In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, patients received 75 mg of GutGard twice daily for 30 days and experienced significant improvement in their symptoms compared to placebo.³ That is a total daily dose of just 150 mg.

GutGard is a flavonoid-rich root extract standardized to contain at least 3.5% glabridin, at least 0.5% glabrol, at least 10% total flavonoids, and no more than 0.5% glycyrrhizin.⁴ The tight standardization is what allows such a low dose to be effective. If you’re using a product with a similar concentration profile, 150 mg per day may be appropriate. If you’re using a generic DGL supplement that doesn’t list flavonoid content or glabridin percentage, you’re probably working with a much less concentrated product and would need a higher dose to achieve comparable results.

This is the practical takeaway many people miss: reading a dose number without knowing the concentration of the extract behind it is almost meaningless. A person taking 150 mg of a highly standardized extract and a person taking 2,000 mg of a traditional DGL tablet may be getting roughly similar amounts of the key bioactive compounds.

DGL Dosing for Helicobacter Pylori

A separate line of research has looked at DGL-type licorice extracts as a tool for managing Helicobacter pylori, the bacterium behind most peptic ulcers and a known risk factor for stomach cancer. In a randomized, double-blind trial, participants with confirmed H. pylori infection received 150 mg of GutGard once daily for 60 days. By the end of the study, 56% of people in the GutGard group tested negative for H. pylori on a stool antigen test, compared to just 4% in the placebo group.⁵

That result is striking for a single-ingredient herbal supplement. Two things are worth noting about the dose, though. First, it was 150 mg once daily, not twice, so the total daily intake was the same 150 mg used in the dyspepsia trial but given as a single dose rather than split. Second, the treatment period was twice as long, lasting 60 days instead of 30. If you’re interested in DGL specifically for H. pylori, the evidence suggests a longer course at the same daily amount, not a higher daily dose.

Animal research has also found that special licorice extracts with reduced glycyrrhizin content can help prevent H. pylori-related stomach damage and reduce the development of gastric tumors.⁶ This is animal data, not a clinical recommendation, but it reinforces the broader pattern that low-glycyrrhizin licorice preparations have biological activity against H. pylori at the gut level.

How DGL Works in the Stomach

Understanding the mechanism helps explain why timing and form matter as much as the raw dose number. DGL appears to work by stimulating the stomach’s own protective systems rather than by directly attacking acid. Research on rat stomach tissue found that DGL accelerates the differentiation of cells into the glandular cells that line the stomach, and it promotes both the formation and secretion of the protective mucus layer.⁷

This is fundamentally different from how antacids or proton pump inhibitors work. Those reduce or neutralize stomach acid. DGL, instead, thickens the armor the stomach already has. That’s why many practitioners recommend taking it before meals: the idea is to build up the mucus barrier before food triggers a wave of acid production. Whether you’re using a 380 mg chewable or a 75 mg concentrated capsule, timing the dose 15 to 20 minutes before eating aligns with this mechanism. Some people also take an additional dose at bedtime, especially if nighttime acid reflux is a problem.

Safety, Side Effects, and Who Should Be Careful

The entire point of DGL is to strip out the glycyrrhizin that causes problems in whole licorice root. When the removal is thorough, DGL avoids the mineralocorticoid activity responsible for the fluid retention, high blood pressure, and low potassium that make regular licorice risky for long-term use.¹ In the clinical trials discussed above, no serious adverse events were reported at the doses used.

That said, there are a few caveats worth keeping in mind:

Residual glycyrrhizin: Not all DGL products remove glycyrrhizin completely. Some retain trace amounts. The GutGard extract, for example, is capped at no more than 0.5% glycyrrhizin by weight. At 150 mg per day, that’s less than 1 mg of glycyrrhizin, which is trivial. But a product that’s less carefully processed could contain enough to cause problems at higher doses or over long periods, especially if you’re sensitive.
Pregnancy: A review of licorice toxicology concluded that Glycyrrhiza glabra and glycyrrhizin salts are moderately toxic and should be used with caution during pregnancy.⁸ This finding primarily concerns whole licorice and glycyrrhizin itself, but because the line between “DGL” and “low-glycyrrhizin licorice” is blurry across the supplement market, most practitioners advise pregnant women to avoid licorice-derived products altogether unless the glycyrrhizin content is verified to be negligible.
Drug interactions: Herbal preparations used for peptic ulcer management, including licorice-derived products, carry potential herb-drug interactions that warrant careful monitoring.⁹ If you take medications for blood pressure, heart rhythm, or potassium regulation, discuss DGL use with your doctor, particularly if your product doesn’t clearly disclose its glycyrrhizin content.

For most adults without the concerns above, DGL at the doses used in clinical trials (up to about 2,280 mg daily for traditional preparations, or 150 mg daily for standardized extracts) has not shown concerning side effects in the published research. The clinical trials ranged from 30 to 60 days. Evidence on safety beyond two months is limited, so if you’re planning to use DGL long-term, periodic check-ins with a healthcare provider are reasonable.

What to Look for on the Label

Because “DGL” can mean anything from a crude deglycyrrhizinated powder to a highly refined flavonoid extract, the supplement label is your most important tool for figuring out the right dose. Here’s what actually matters:

Glycyrrhizin content: Look for products that state a maximum glycyrrhizin level, ideally below 1% of the extract weight. If no glycyrrhizin limit is listed, you can’t be sure how much was removed.
Standardization markers: Products standardized to specific flavonoids like glabridin or total flavonoid percentage are typically more concentrated. A product standardized to 3.5% glabridin with 10% total flavonoids is in the same ballpark as the GutGard extract tested in trials, and doses around 75 to 150 mg would be appropriate.
Form: Chewable tablets are the traditional delivery method and are designed to mix with saliva. Capsules and powders bypass this step and deliver directly to the stomach. The clinical trials using low-dose standardized extracts used capsules taken after food, not chewed tablets. If your product is a chewable, follow the chewable dosing guidance. If it’s a capsule, follow the capsule guidance. Don’t mix and match.
Fillers and additional ingredients: Some DGL products combine licorice extract with other gut-soothing ingredients like aloe vera, slippery elm, or marshmallow root. These aren’t harmful, but they make it harder to know how much DGL you’re actually getting per tablet.

DGL Beyond the Stomach

While most DGL research focuses on the stomach and upper digestive tract, there’s growing interest in topical applications for the mouth. Canker sores and other forms of oral ulceration are an area where DGL’s anti-inflammatory and mucosal-protective properties make intuitive sense, and DGL has been explored as a bioactive ingredient in herbal mouth ulcer gels.¹⁰ The dosing logic here is completely different from oral supplementation: you’re applying a small amount of gel directly to the affected tissue rather than swallowing a systemic dose. If you’re using DGL for mouth sores, the product instructions for the specific gel or paste matter more than any of the per-day numbers discussed above.

Some people also dissolve DGL chewable tablets in the mouth without swallowing, essentially creating a topical application for sore throats or mild esophageal irritation. This folk-remedy approach doesn’t have robust clinical trial support, but it aligns with the known mechanism of DGL promoting mucus formation on contact with mucosal tissue. If you try this, the dose per tablet is the same as for stomach use; you’re just changing the delivery site.

Choosing Between High-Dose and Low-Dose Approaches

If you’re dealing with occasional indigestion or mild heartburn and want a gentle daily supplement, a low-dose standardized extract in the range of 75 to 150 mg per day is where the controlled trial evidence is strongest. Two studies using this approach, one for functional dyspepsia and one for H. pylori, both showed clear benefits over placebo at these modest doses.³⁵

If you’re using traditional DGL chewable tablets, which are far more widely available and typically much cheaper, the tested dose is 760 mg three times daily for gastric ulcers.² Many people use lower amounts for milder symptoms, chewing one tablet before lunch and dinner, for instance. That’s a reasonable starting point, though the evidence base for those intermediate doses is thinner than for the specific amounts used in published trials.

One thing the research consistently shows is that DGL is not a fast-acting antacid. It doesn’t neutralize acid on contact. The benefit builds over days to weeks as the stomach’s mucus barrier strengthens. If you pop a DGL tablet during an acute heartburn episode and feel no immediate relief, that doesn’t mean it isn’t working; it means you’re expecting it to do something it was never designed to do. For acute symptoms, conventional antacids work faster. DGL’s strength is as a daily preventive measure that supports the stomach lining over time.

1
PubMed Central. Glycyrrhiza glabra (Licorice)
2
PubMed Central. Double-blind trial of deglycyrrhizinated liquorice in gastric ulcer
3
PubMed Central. An Extract of Glycyrrhiza glabra (GutGard) Alleviates Symptoms of Functional Dyspepsia: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study
4
PubMed Central. An Extract of Glycyrrhiza glabra (GutGard) Alleviates Symptoms of Functional Dyspepsia: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study – Section: Randomization and Blinding
5
PubMed Central. Effect of GutGard in the Management of Helicobacter pylori: A Randomized Double Blind Placebo Controlled Study
6
PubMed. Special licorice extracts containing lowered glycyrrhizin and enhanced licochalcone A prevented Helicobacter pylori-initiated, salt diet-promoted gastric tumorigenesis
7
PubMed. Deglycyrrhizinised liquorice (DGL) and the renewal of rat stomach epithelium
8
PubMed. Toxicological Effects of Glycyrrhiza glabra (Licorice): A Review
9
Current Traditional Medicine. Medicinal Herbs for the Treatment of Peptic Ulcers
10
International Journal Of Creative and Innovative Research In All Studies. ADVANCES IN HERBAL MOUTH ULCER GELS: DEGLYCYRRHIZINATED LICORICE AS A KEY BIOACTIVE