A hypothesis on the death of the Greek philosopher Heraclitus

Searching data in historical sources, we hypothesize that Heraclitus consumed an excess of licorice to reduce both thirst and hunger, due to the limited availability of other food outside Ephesus where Heraclitus lived. The prolonged intake of licoice could have led to sodium and water retention and probably to severe hypertension and dropsy, which in turn caused the death of the philosopher.