Starwest Botanicals Essiac Tea Organic - Caffeine Free Herbal Blend, Loose Leaf Burdock Root, Slippery Elm Bark, Sheep Sorrel, & Rhubarb, Certified Kosher, Non-GMO - Bulk 1 lb Bag

This is a great tea. Despite some comments that it doesn't taste that great, I think it's a matter of individual taste. I have tried it, it wasn't sour, it had a kind of earthy taste. Both my husband and I drank it every morning for a month or so, more to see what it was like than anything else. We used 1 oz of the made tea, then added an ounce of hot water. Yes. it's a hassle to make, but as you only need to do it once every two or three weeks, it's really not bad. And it's boiling it up once, letting it sit overnight, and then getting it hot again, straining and bottling it. No brains needed!I really bought it to take to my sister who lives in South Africa. She is suffering from metastatic breast cancer which has gone into her lungs and bones. She has been on four different chemos over the years, and the one she is using at present is experimental. Her feeling is that she is tired of chemo, doctors, having blood drawn, and wants to stop it all. As a caution, some have mentioned that the 8 herb essiac is better than the 4 herb, this one is the 4 herb. It may be that the 8 herb is better, but if you have breast cancer, depending on whether it is estrogen receptive, one of the herbs in the 8 herb, I believe it's red clover, should not be taken if your cancer is estrogen receptive. A friend who had tried the 8 herb told me that the 8 herb really does taste bad.My sister didn't want to try this at first, but as she was feeling so bad, she asked me to make it up for her. I did, using just half the amount of herbs and water mentioned on the packet, as it will last quite a while. We asked family to save bottles with screw on caps and used those to store the tea. She got up in the night to take 1 oz from the pot as she wanted to get started. She started taking just 1 oz three times per day, and after a couple of weeks increased that a bit to about 2 oz. She just drinks it straight and cold, but drinks plenty of water during the day. And she says she actually likes the taste of it. By the third day of taking it she said she was feeling so much better. She wasn't taking a nap in the morning and afternoon as she had been. She was down to just one nap per day! She had also been coughing badly, unable to get her breath. After a week, she was only coughing occasionally. She kept telling me how much better she felt. I was also making a smoothie for us every evening that was full of fruit and vegetables, so I have to credit that for some of the improvement.She had blood drawn while I was there to check her tumor markers. On chemo alone they were normally coming down by 10 points every month. She was sure that they would have come down more because she was feeling so much better. Well, they had only come down by 9, so she was disappointed. But at the beginning of November she had them checked again - and they had come down by 19 points! She was very pleased, as they had never come down by that much in a month before. The doctor was pleased too, though he doesn't know she is taking essiac at the same time as chemo. The information I had found for her stated that essiac tea would not affect chemo, but that the chemo might lessen the effectiveness of the essiac.So we don't yet know how well she will continue to do. I will try to update this from time to time with her progress, or lack of. But what I can say is that based on what I have seen with her, it is worth a try, as even if it doesn't cure her, it has made her quality of life much more comfortable.

My dog became diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus (the severe form) at the age of 6, and I'm willing to bet this was due to her dog food. We were feeding her Purina, and it wasn't until recently (and the hard way) that I learned just how terrible most commercial dog food is.Her symptoms included: crusting/scabbing on her nose, limping in back legs, extreme lethargy, depression and loss of interest in playtime/walks, and decreased appetite. She most definitely was not her usual happy and playful self.The recommended treatment for autoimmune disorders such as lupus is prescription steroids to suppress the now out-of-whack and over-reactive immune system. Life expectancy via treatment with steroids is very poor, with 40% of dogs dying within a year by way of organ failure, typically the kidneys. Additionally, once you start steroids, you must administer them for the remainder of the dog's life. Once given, they permanently weaken the immune system. They are expensive on top of that, so many owners unfortunately have to choose between coughing up the money for the drugs or putting their pet down.I was strongly opposed to putting my dog on steroids as I don't think anyone's immune system (human or dog) should be suppressed. Rather, it should be supported so that it can function properly, which is where Essiac comes in. Plus, Western medicine fails miserably when it comes to chronic conditions, so I tend to shy away from it in such cases. It focuses on symptom control and thus rarely ever fixes the root of the problem.The day I received her diagnosis, I immediately switched my dog to a raw diet and supplemented her with Essiac daily. She began showing signs of improvement immediately, although a bit slow. Her limping was the first symptom to go, and disappeared within a few days. With time, her energy levels increased, she appeared more lively and happy, and her crusting/scabbing drastically decreased in severity.I initially had trouble getting her to drink all the tea as she didn't have an appetite, but she now gladly gulps it down, every last drop. She knows what's good for her :)This is the third month since being diagnosed and she continues to improve. She recently started sprinting, which she hasn't done since being diagnosed. We went from going on daily walks to daily runs that are slowly increasing in pace and duration before she begins to fatigue. Although she still isn't completely back to her former self (and may never be) she is doing MUCH MUCH better and her lupus symptoms appear to be under control. And this sure beats giving her steroids.Although I believe both a diet change and Essiac have contributed heavily to her improved health, the Essiac is definitely the main reason behind her significant improvement. About 1.5 weeks after starting her on Essiac, I ran out, and so my dog had to go 4 or 5 days without it before I was able to order a new package from Amazon. During this time, her lupus-related symptoms were showing signs of return: she began showing issues with her legs again; the scabbing on her nose increased; and her energy levels decreased. As soon as I put her back on Essiac, she was back on the road to improvement :)With that said, I will most definitely continue to supplement my dog with Essiac daily for the rest of her time with us. It has worked wonders for our pup and has put her on the road to recovery :)UPDATE (12/16/14)It has been 8 months since my dog first became diagnosed with lupus. I continue to supplement her with Essiac daily. She is alive and well and her energy levels have returned to her former state.All of her symptoms but one have disappeared: she still gets scabbing on her nose that sometimes bleeds. I have tried several different remedies to improve the condition of her nose, including black currant oil, neem oil, coconut oil, homeopathic pellets, rosemary, basil, and pulverized black seed (Nigella Sativa). Black seed seems to have slightly improved the scabbing, but the other remedies have been of no help. I am still experimenting with dosage, however, as black seed has a potent peppery smell and taste and I don't want to overwhelm my dog's meals with it.In the meantime I apply coconut oil to moisturize her nose. It doesn't hurt that she loves the taste.

For me, I love the earthy taste of essiac tea and the second thing is it just makes me feel better all around! I feel like it gives me energy all day and the extra umphhh in the afternoons. It helps you go to the bathroom #1 & #2… to help stay regular. I also give this to my chocolate Labrador he has lipomas all over him and before giving him the tea daily he couldn’t barely walk or get up out of his bed. I missed a week of giving him this because it was unavailable at the time and again he could barely walk or get up out of his bed and no energy to play! I borrowed some from my sister until I could get more and he went back to his energetic self. Idk what I would do without StarWest Essiac Tea! I will never be without it again if possible!

I feel good drinking this tea. My only complaint is that it has a few “twig” pieces than I would like. It tastes good and is good for you!

We bought this product after attending a seminar about its benefits and effects on cancer. After receiving the product 2 days earlier than anticipated, I made the tea according to the specific directions given to us and not that on the package. However, the only difference is to not allow it to boil a second time but bring it to an almost boiling state then remove from heat. We are currently waiting to see how it works. With herbal medicine it takes time and patience to see results. The recipe was extremely easy to make and tasted like an earthy tea. And there was definitely way more product than we thought, which was a blessing!

It tastes a lot different that what I was making from another company (which I can’t get from because it’s out of stock) but I’m making the switch to this brand my husband and I have been using this tea for 14 years