Article #2: No Teas For The Hygienist

The practice of drinking teas made from the leaves, the stems, barks, roots, flowers, seeds and fruits of plants is an old one. The practice was taught to mankind by the medical profession, which was, in its origin and for long after its origin, largely herbal in character. Due to the fact that some part of almost every plant contains a poison or two, it is possible to use some part of almost every plant known to man for its alleged "medical action," both for the "prevention" and "cure" of disease. Faith in the healing virtues of herb teas lingers on in the minds of the people long after the medical profession, which originally fostered and cultivated this faith, has abandoned it.

Mint tea, alfalfa tea, horse mint tea, and other teas are in extensive use among a growing segment of our population and great numbers of these people are convinced that they can derive benefit from the practice of drinking these teas. A brief, instructive reference to some of these currently popular teas is given below, in Herbal Myths.

Reprinted from The Hygienic Review, August 1973