hi everyone, Why is it that a lot of people seem to blame herbs for problems when far more problems are often caused by allopathic medicine? The problem is not the herbs - it is people using them incorrectly without the proper guidance. We wouldn't recommend that people decide on their own doses of regular medicine and the same goes for herbal medicines. Barbara mentioned chamomile tea causing a problem in a breastfed baby. A very common side effect is nausea and in general two cups per day of any herb tea should be plenty. It is possible that the chamomile in itself was not the problem but the way it was brewed as Barbara said the tea was strongly brewed. When brewing herb teas it is important not to let the herbs draw for more than five to ten minutes, depending on the tea, as after this period of time the toxic properties of the plant start to be drawn out as well. Do you think that this mother could have been leaving the tea to draw too long and rather than the chamomile itself upseting the baby it could have been these compounds that caused the problem? Breastfeeding mothers do need to be careful which herbs they use as many affect lactation. The norishing teas help boost milk supply while some suppress milk supply. Sage is one such herb so should be used very sparingly by lactating women. Love, Judy. (Who does know about herbs and has studied and used them for medicinal purposes a lot!). -- Judy Grundy email: [log in to unmask] WWW: http://www.cs.waikato.ac.nz/~jgrundy/judy.html