Traditional Medicinals teas are generally safe for most adults when used as directed. The company is one of the more reputable herbal tea brands in the U.S., with USDA Organic certification, Non-GMO Project verification across its product line, and a commitment to pharmacopoeial-grade herbs. That said, “safe” depends heavily on which tea you’re drinking, how often, and whether you take medications or have certain health conditions.
Quality and Certification Standards
Traditional Medicinals positions itself as a wellness tea company, not just a beverage brand. Its products carry USDA Organic and Non-GMO Project Verified labels, and the company sources herbs that meet pharmacopoeial standards, meaning the raw ingredients are tested against established benchmarks for identity, purity, and potency. For wild-collected herbs, the company follows FairWild certification principles, which include traceability requirements designed to ensure that what’s on the label matches what’s in the bag.
The brand has no history of FDA recalls or warning letters in the United States. A 2020 advisory from the Philippines FDA flagged several Traditional Medicinals products as “unregistered food products” in that country, but that was a regulatory registration issue specific to the Philippine market, not a product safety concern. The products themselves were the same formulations sold without incident in the U.S.
Senna Laxative Teas Need Caution
The most common safety concern involves Traditional Medicinals’ Smooth Move line, which contains senna. Senna is a stimulant laxative that works by triggering contractions in the intestinal wall. It’s effective for occasional constipation, but it’s not meant for daily or long-term use.
Mayo Clinic guidance is clear: senna-based products should not be used for more than one week without medical supervision. Overuse can lead to dehydration, electrolyte imbalances, and a condition where the bowel becomes dependent on stimulant laxatives to function. If you experience rectal bleeding, severe cramping, or no improvement after a few days, stop using it. People with unexplained stomach pain, nausea, or a sudden change in bowel habits lasting more than two weeks should avoid senna entirely until they’ve spoken with a healthcare provider.
This applies to all senna-containing varieties in the lineup, including the peppermint and chocolate flavored versions of Smooth Move.
Licorice Root and Blood Pressure
Several Traditional Medicinals blends contain licorice root, including Throat Coat, their most popular product for sore throats. Licorice contains a compound called glycyrrhizin that can raise blood pressure by interfering with how your kidneys regulate sodium and water balance. The effect is dose-dependent and cumulative.
Research published in BMJ Case Reports found that as little as 75 mg of glycyrrhizin per day for two weeks can cause a measurable increase in systolic blood pressure. The European Scientific Committee on Food considers regular intake above 100 mg per day a health risk and recommends keeping daily consumption below 10 mg for safety. A single cup of licorice tea occasionally is unlikely to cause problems for most people, but drinking it daily, especially if you already have high blood pressure or take blood pressure medication, is a real concern. The UK Food Standards Agency requires beverages with significant glycyrrhizin content to carry a warning label for people with hypertension.
If you enjoy Throat Coat during a cold, a few days of use is reasonable. Making it a daily habit for weeks or months is where the risk increases.
Herb-Drug Interactions to Watch For
Herbal teas are pharmacologically active, which means they can interact with prescription medications. The most significant risk in the Traditional Medicinals lineup involves St. John’s Wort, which the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health classifies as having a high overall risk of drug interaction. St. John’s Wort speeds up the liver enzymes that metabolize many common drugs, effectively making those drugs less effective.
Documented interactions include reduced effectiveness of:
- Birth control pills: St. John’s Wort can lower hormone levels enough to cause breakthrough bleeding or contraceptive failure
- Blood thinners: particularly warfarin, where reduced effectiveness raises the risk of clotting
- Immunosuppressants: critical for organ transplant recipients
- Certain heart medications: including digoxin
- Antidepressants: combining St. John’s Wort with SSRIs or other serotonin-affecting medications can cause a dangerous buildup of serotonin
Other herbs in the Traditional Medicinals range, such as valerian root (found in Nighty Night tea) and echinacea, have milder interaction profiles but can still affect sedatives, anti-anxiety medications, and drugs processed by the liver. If you take any prescription medication regularly, check the ingredient list before making an herbal tea part of your routine.
Teas That Are Low Risk
Not every product in the line carries these caveats. Their single-ingredient teas like peppermint, chamomile, ginger, and nettle leaf have long histories of safe use and minimal interaction risk for most people. Peppermint tea is well tolerated by the vast majority of adults (though it can worsen acid reflux in some). Chamomile is similarly gentle, with the main precaution being that people with ragweed allergies occasionally react to it. Ginger tea is safe in moderate amounts and is commonly used for nausea.
These simpler formulations are where Traditional Medicinals is essentially as safe as any other quality tea brand. The risk profile changes when you move into their more targeted “wellness” blends that contain pharmacologically potent herbs like senna, licorice root, or St. John’s Wort.
How to Use Them Safely
Read the box. Traditional Medicinals includes usage directions, suggested duration, and cautions on their packaging, and they’re more detailed than most tea brands. The company typically recommends one to three cups per day for most products, and their laxative teas specifically note short-term use only.
A practical approach: treat their simpler herbal teas (peppermint, chamomile, ginger) like regular beverages you can enjoy freely. Treat their therapeutic blends (Smooth Move, Throat Coat, Nighty Night, St. John’s Wort) more like what they are, which is mild herbal remedies with real physiological effects. Use them for a specific purpose, for a limited time, and pay attention to how your body responds.