Bottom line...
ML has repeatedly stated the best way to health is through a natural, organic, free range, high quality (which would likely be considered VERY high quality these days) diet... adjusting your food choices to follow the seasons and your OWN personal needs, which can vary considerably.
This diet CAN include herbs, spices, etc.
With increasing chemical use, irradiation, pasteurization, homogenization, GMO, commercial "organic" farming and the adulteration of the organic label this is getting increasingly difficult to accomplish. Not only that, but it can be cost prohibitive for many people, unless they are fortunate enough to have their own land AND they are willing to put forth the effort to plant and harvest their own with great attention to maintaining the quality of the soil (terrain).
Lacking the sources or ability due to circumstances to follow the above course of action to have and maintain health, a number of suggestions have been given here that have their roots, their very foundations, laid over the course of man's history... there is nothing new here other than the reasons why, and the combination of, as in the alkalizing drink... why most people seem to need answers for everything is beyond me. The answers often lead to confusion.
If it works, it works... and it does. It is still the only protocol I continue to do after nearly 3.5 years.
Just for the record, the ONLY thing that ML has stated different than my mom's bag of tricks from Pennsylvania, Amish mountain, do it yourself medicine and health care, was the use of lime water (she knew about its use, and calcium hydroxide for many other things) in the drink, which I had already known about in studying Edgar Cayce when I was 17.
Everything but the Epsom Salts can be traced back to the beginnings of man's recorded history, including the switchel.
grz-