Chances are you’ve slathered a cooling aloe vera gel over a searing sunburn. Perhaps you’ve even cracked open an aloe plant leaf and drizzled its milky juice directly onto inflamed or dry, itchy skin. Information found in wellnesstimes.com states that topically applied, aloe’s soothing benefits are widely known—and have been extolled by nurturing grandmothers for decades. But the plant harnesses a host of other potential applications for health and wellness. Naturopaths and herbalists have long touted its ability to ease constipation, flush toxins from the body, tackle gastric problems and even help lower blood sugar when consumed orally as a supplement or a juice. According to the American Botanical Council, there are more than 300 species of aloe plants that grow all around the world. Because its documented use dates back to the ancient Egyptians, who dubbed aloe the “plant of immortality,” and spans much of the globe, botanists aren’t entirely sure where the genus originated. Regardless, the species commonly grown and used for medicinal purposes in America are those familiar perennials with fleshy, dark green, upright leaves with serrated edges. Aloe plants contain gel which is the translucent, gooey substance packed into the inner leaf. Aloe gel contains active compounds that help temper inflammation and block bacteria from infecting damaged and vulnerable organs—including our biggest organ, the skin. Gel constituents are also thought to aid in cell regeneration, resulting in faster healing times. For these reasons, aloe enthusiasts swear by gel and gel-based topical products’ healing prowess.
Research largely supports aloe’s effectiveness in these areas. One study published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine in June 2010 found that aloe cream reduced patients’ postoperative pain, sped wound healing and cut the need for analgesic painkillers significantly more than placebo. As for burns, a trial published in the journal Surgery Today in July 2009 found that second-degree burn patients given an aloe gel–based cream healed more quickly than those treated with topical silver sulfadiazine.
Just as aloe gel shows promise in soothing and healing skin, preliminary research suggests it may also protect against and help heal gastric ulcers. According to a study published in the World Journal of Gastroenterology in April 2006, aloe vera, given internally, reduced gastric inflammation and sparked ulcer healing in mice. And research detailed in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology in July 2004 found that aloe protects mucous membranes in the gastric systems of mice from injury.
Another promising benefit of taking aloe internally is its antidiabetic effects. Research findings on aloe’s impact on blood glucose and triglyceride levels have been inconsistent, but a paper published in the Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal in July 2009 points to several studies that support the plant’s blood sugar-lowering effects in patients with type 2 diabetes. In their own trial, the authors found that an aloe vera extract resulted in lower triglyceride and glucose levels within four and six weeks, respectively, in a small sampling of diabetic patients. Evolving Nutrition offers Aloe Vera in the form of a softgel from Protocol For Life Balanceand can be ordered by contacting a customer service representative at (800) 458-0891. To read additional information on this supplement, you may visit our website HERE for product details and additional nutritional facts.
If you have questions about aloe or would like to reach out to a consultant at L'BRI PURE n' NATURAL, please contact Kathy Stubbs (Senior Consultant and Certified Skin Care Consultant) at Kathy@DreamJourney.net or you can visit her website at www.kathystubbs.lbri.com!
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