Your “Natural” Herbal Tea May Not Be So Natural

Am I wrong in thinking that "herbal teas" aren't really tea at all? Tea comes from a specific plant. Herbal teas would more correctly be called "beverages­."

you are right!! i just went to their website and though for most of their teas they do not, some they do, so they're getting knocked off the list ... thx for pointing this out!!

teavana DOES use "natural flavors" as well.

Green tea. All other teas are obsolete.

David Kessler's book "The End of Overeating­" has a lot of informatio­n about these so-called natural flavors that food companies add to foods. In fact, they have entire stafffs of scientists who combine different chemicals to get just the right flavors and textures so the foods will dissolve quicker in your mouth while chewing, and will slide down your throat easier. They are designed to make you eat more and not recognize the feelings of fullness.

The problem is that we (consumers­) have become so accustomed to MORE flavor in our foods that manufactur­ers are now adding more to satisfy our desires. One feeds off the other - they give us more flavor, we get used to it, we expect more flavor! Truly natural flavors that naturally occur in foods are often very subtle - not something we're conditione­d to be satisfied with ...

I recently discovered that my Celestial Seasonings Teas are altered. The Honey Chamomile tea touts "Richer Chamomile Flavor!" and my Lemon Zinger has even MORE Lemon Flavor! What's going on? Why mess with a classic? The Honey Chamomile is way too powerful - I can't even stand the smell of the tea bag.

I don't see Lipton tea listed. So I guess that terrible tasting tea is more natural?

I have been trying to make my own forever! Thanks!

Thanks for mentioning them - Liptons does indeed use "nat flavors". In their pure black tea, they DONT, but in their fruit flavored black teas they do and in their herbal teas they do, so they're being added to the list!

Good Earth Original. Cinnamon oil makes it taste sweet and apparently­, something else is added as well! Darn. :-( They had a restaurant (is it still there?) in Encino or thereabout­s in the 80's with wonderful food. I'd love to find their tahini/mis­o dressing recipe! I can't quite recreate it.

Many of the Good Earth teas also have artificial flavors in them. Really, the only way to make sure you know what's in your tea is to make your own recipes up. It's rather fun once you get started, too!

Interestin­g that they wouldn't divulge their ingredient list. That's most telling to me. I don't see why they wouldn't, honestly. A propriety blend should be protected, but certain things are obfuscated anyways without revealing the exact methodolog­y or percentage­s of a mixture. Ever had a cocktail? You can pretty much know what types of alcohol are in it, but the mixture ratios and how it's made can easily separate a so-so beverage from a excellent one. For example, saying... ingredient­s: rose hips, sugar, cinnomon is nowhere near the same as saying ingredient­s: 3 parts cinnomon to 5 parts sugar to 8 parts rose hips. One is a list, the other is a recipe. Honestly, I would see if you can locate a lab to analyze sugar components of the steeped tea if you were serious about it. Maybe a reader here can help out. I think Good Earth is pulling a fast one here with "natural flavors". Sugar is pretty natural (if unrefined)­, and "flavors" by the FDA covers a large contingent of items. Per the FDA guidelines­: Natural Flavor is the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive­, protein hydrolysat­e, distillate­, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysi­s, which contains the flavoring constituen­ts derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or any other edible portions of a plant, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentati­on products thereof, whose primary function in food is flavoring.