Dr Johanna Budwig was big on hot drinks and one of her recommendations was herbal tea. In her native Germany, as in other parts of Europe, there is a bigger tradition of herbal teas than here in the UK.
Herbal teas are simply the carefully dried leaves, flowers, stems etc of plants other than Camellia Sinensis (the plant from which our usual black and green teas are made) and do not contain caffeine. Do not confuse them with the many flavoured teas and drinks which cannot be included on the Budwig Diet as they often contain caffeine and / or inferior grades of tea and can be artificially coloured or sweetened.
Herbs are best picked fresh from the garden or bought loose and infused as required. If buying bags of tea, read the ingredients on the pack to ensure there is no added sugar, preservatives or flavours.
Enjoy traditional herbal teas like peppermint, chamomile, lemon balm, lime flower and hibiscus. Herbal teas can be refreshing, soothing calming or invigorating depending on the plant they come from. Sweeten only with a little honey.
Essiac Tea is a herbal tea from North America which is used in the treatment of cancer.