How to Brew Herbal Tea: Common Mistakes to Avoid
Dr. Boris Wydoff
People buy good herbs — and then kill them with boiling water in a metal mug, and drink the result down in one go just to tick the box. Herbal medicine is not "having a bit of herbal tea": it has a technique, and half the result depends on that technique.
The water decides more than the herb
For medicinal infusions I recommend water that has been distilled. It is empty, and so it greedily takes in everything the herb has to give. Hard tap water is already saturated with minerals and chlorine — it has nowhere to put the herbal substances, and the infusion comes out at half strength.
The basic technique of an infusion
- One tablespoon of the blend per glass of boiling water.
- Steep for fifteen minutes with the lid on.
- Strain thoroughly — the herb has given what it had, there is nothing more for it to do in the infusion.
- Glass, ceramic or enamel. Not metal.
Drinking is an art too
A medicinal blend should work gently and over a long time, so the infusion is drunk not in one gulp but in small sips, spread through the day. A good rhythm is a few sips every twenty minutes between meals. Warm: a warm infusion works more warmly too. The value is not in a single dose but in the steady support the body receives all day long.
A course, not an episode
Herbs are not a pill you swallow and forget. They work in courses: usually two or three weeks of taking them, then a pause. A blend drunk once "when you remembered" does nothing — except calm your conscience.
Which herbs for what
The compositions of medicinal blends — for the liver, the kidneys, for inflammation — I give in my books as exact recipes, with doses and contraindications: a set of herbs for a particular task is no longer "tea" but treatment, and it should not be put together from hearsay.
A WORD OF CAUTION
Herbs are active substances: they interact with medicines and have contraindications in pregnancy, in stones, in allergy. Check medicinal courses with your doctor, especially if you take medication on a permanent basis.
Frequently asked questions
What water should medicinal herbs be brewed with?
Distilled water is best: empty water draws the active substances out of the herb more fully. Hard chlorinated water gives an infusion at half strength.
How long should a herbal blend steep?
The basic scheme: a tablespoon of the blend per glass of boiling water, fifteen minutes with the lid on, then strain thoroughly.
How should a herbal infusion be drunk?
Warm, in small sips, spread through the day — for example, a few sips every twenty minutes between meals. In a course of two or three weeks, not as a one-off.
Go deeper with Dr. Wydoff's materials
Handbook for the Healthy and the Ill (e-book, Russian) →The Healing Herbal Tea (video, Russian) →
Boris Wydoff — naturopath and author, Ph.D. in nutrition. For over fifty years I have helped people restore health through nutrition, cleansing and the power of the mind — in Europe, America and Asia. About the author →