Medicinal Uses of aloe-vera

Aloe Vera

Aloe is a part of the lily family native to Africa and commercially grown in southern Texas and Mexico. The aloe leaf contains a gooey gel; the outer leaf tissue produces a bitter yellow juice, known as drug aloe, once a widely used laxative. Aloe gel should not be confused with drug aloe.

Traditional Aloe Use
The Aloe gel has been used to treat inflammation for more than 2,000 years. The fresh gel has widely been used as a folk medicine for minor burns and sunburn, as well as minor cuts and scrapes. Aloe gel is also used in beverages commonly sold as “Aloe juice”. Aloe gel, mixed with water, citric acid, fruit juices, and preservatives is also marketed as “aloe juice”, touted as a digestive aid or folk remedy for arthritis, stomach ulcers, diabetes, and other conditions.

Aloe’s Today:
The aloe plant’s healing powers are most widely touted for being able to treat skin conditions. These conditions include psoriasis, shingles, and others associated with itching; in addition, cuts, abrasions and burns are said to benefit from topically applying the leaf’s gel to the affected areas. Modern clinical use of aloe gel began in the 1930s, but favorable case histories did not provide conclusive evidence of its effectiveness. Recent studies have documented that aloe gel promotes wound healing and is of therapeutic value in thermal injuries and a variety of soft-tissue injuries. In animal studies, it prevented progressive skin damage that usually follows burns, frostbite, and electrical injuries. Aloe gel penetrates injured tissue, relieves pain and inflammation, and dilates capillaries, increasing blood supply to the injury. Ultimately, aloe gel increases both tensile strength at the wound site and healing activity in the space between cells, thus helping to promote recovery.

Several animal studies failed to demonstrate aloe’s anti-ulcer or antidiabetic potential, thus refuting some of its traditional uses. Studies of purified compounds from a Japanese species, A. arborescens (Kidachi aloe), however, did show an antidiabetic effect, as well as inhibition of stomach secretions and lesions. More research is needed.

Common misspelling of Aloe Vera – alo veara , aloo vhera , alow veara