Acne
After washing your face thoroughly, simply apply Aloe Vera gel directly to the blemishes, scars or sores caused by acne. Don't rinse the gel from your skin, just let it dry.
Age Spots
Apply Aloe Vera gel to the brown spots on your skin twice daily and you should start to see them disappearing within a few months.
Arthritis
- Internally: Drink 2-4 tablespoons of Aloe Vera gel or juice twice a day. Drink for at least two months before giving up on this remedy as most people do not report relief until they are into their second month.
Additionally, mixing Aloe Vera into your pet's food has shown to decrease the pain of arthritic conditions for animals as well. - Externally: Some people report pain relief from Arthritis within minutes by rubbing the gel directly on the affected area.
Asthma
An age old remedy for Asthma is to cut up some Aloe Vera leaves, place them into a pot of boiling water and breathe in the steam. Another way to accomplish this is to use an atomizer with a stabilized Aloe Vera gel – this way, cold mist can be inhaled as some people with Asthma may have a difficult time breathing in hot steam.
Burns
One of the best known Aloe Vera remedies is for healing burns. Apply Aloe Vera ointment directly to the burn and, depending on the severity, try to keep the burn wet with the Aloe Vera for the first 48 hours. This will soothe the pain and speed up healing, as well as reduce the scarring caused by severe burns dramatically.
If the burn was caused by acid, you must wash the burn thoroughly before applying anything or the acid will continue to eat away at the skin underneath the ointment.
You can use the plant as well for this remedy, but by itself, Aloe Vera has astringent properties which can dry the skin, so a good organic ointment is recommended here.
Cancer of the Skin
There have been reports of the total elimination of skin cancer by applying Aloe Vera to the area 2 – 4 times daily for several months. Be sure to continue medical supervision if you want to use this remedy.
Constipation
Aloe Vera remedies have been used extensively for many digestive issues, including constipation. The part of the plant that actually has a laxative effect is the bitter yellow sap that lies next to the skin of the leaf. The gel itself is not a laxative.
To make your own laxative juice, take leaves from the Aloe plant and cut them up into pieces. Place them into a lidded jar with filtered water and keep in the refrigerator.
Drink a little (an ounce or two) as needed to help your bowels restore their regularity. Replace the water you drink from the jar after each dose. The strength of the mixture is determined by the amount of leaves you put in the jar.
Cough
Aloe Vera remedies a cough if used as a tea with Honey. Dilute Aloe with hot water and use Raw Organic Honey (or any natural sweetener that you can handle) to taste since Aloe can be a little bitter.
Aloe Vera is a wonderful soothing agent for the throat because of its anti-inflammatory properties. If you are using fresh aloe from the plant, be careful not to scrape the leaf too hard or you will end up with a drink that induces vomiting instead.
Cuts and Wounds
Aloe Vera remedies have been used since ancient times for cuts and wounds. First, clean the wound. Then apply the pulp of the plant to the wound (or use a good Aloe Vera gel) and wrap the wound with a bandage. Keep the bandage soaked in Aloe Vera juice or ointment. This will make your cut heal faster, with less pain and will reduce scarring.
Aloe Vera remedies will also reduce the risk of infection, or if your wound is already infected, bind a cut leaf to the wound for 12 hours and you will see remarkable improvement.
Eczema/Psoriasis
Apply Aloe Vera gel or ointment directly to the affected area 2 – 3 times a day. This Aloe Vera remedy will help relieve the itching and swelling of eczema.
Fatigue
Drinking an Aloe Vera health tonic (2-4 tablespoons) every day has been reported to restore energy to those who have fatigue. The energy in this case however is probably due to the benefits that Aloe has on the digestive system which allows your body to cleanse itself of toxins faster and utilize more of the nutrients you put in your body.
Hemorrhoids
Using a syringe, insert a few tablespoons of Aloe Vera gel or ointment into the rectum to relieve the itching and burning of hemorrhoids and to allow them to heal faster.
Insect Bites
When bitten by any insect, an immediate application of Aloe Vera plant, gel or ointment will quickly reduce the pain, swelling and itching as well as allow the bite to heal more quickly. Aloe is not as effective if there is a significant delay in using it on the bite.
Poison Ivy, Poison Oak & Poison Sumac
To help relieve the severe itching and swelling that can occur from Poison Ivy, Poison Oak and Sumac, simply spray Aloe Vera juice or apply Aloe Vera gel or plant to the affected areas.
Scar Removal
Apply Aloe Vera gel or ointment to scars twice a day, morning and night. This Aloe Vera remedy requires patience as many people report that it takes up to 6 months to see results. For added benefit, mix the Aloe with Vitamin E oil.
Sore Throat
Gargling with Aloe Vera juice has been effective for some people in relieving the pain of a sore throat. One benefit over other remedies is that you can swallow the juice after gargling to get an effect deeper in the throat.
Stretch Marks
Apply Aloe Vera gel or ointment to the abdomen area twice daily (or anywhere you may see stretch marks) during and after pregnancy to help your skin adjust to the growth and shrinkage caused by pregnancy.
Sunburn
This Aloe Vera remedy has been long used: Apply Aloe Vera plant, juice or gel directly on the affected areas to relieve pain and lessen peeling. For severe sunburn, keep the skin wet with Aloe Vera as much as possible and see your health practitioner if it's very severe.
Ulcers
This Aloe Vera remedy can help soothe the pain of ulcers. Take 2 – 4 tablespoons of either the juice or the gel 4 times daily. It is best taken 30 minutes before each meal as well as at bedtime.
Varicose Veins
Apply Aloe Vera gel directly to varicose veins and allow it to soak into the skin and leave it there. Some people have reported a reduced amount of pain from their varicose veins as well as the veins healing.
General Properties:
The Aloe Vera plant has long spiked leaves that are full of a watery and slimy gel. This gel is what is mostly used for Aloe Vera remedies, although the yellow bitter sap between the skin and the gel is what has the laxative effect that Aloe is know to have.
If you are using the plant for your remedies, rather than a commercial gel or juice, be sure to cut the leaves that are closest to the base, as they are older and more potent in quality. This will also keep your plant looking nice. You can keep portions of the unused cut leaf in the refrigerator for up to three weeks.
Aloe Vera remedies are effective because the Aloe Vera plant is a natural mixture of antibiotic, astringent and coagulating agents as well as being a pain and scar inhibitor and a growth stimulator. The Aloe Vera plant contains a polysaccharide called glucomannan which works in harmony with other polysaccharides present that contain galactose and uronic acids as well as pentoses to provide these healing effects.
Possible Side Effects:
There are no known side effects of Aloe Vera.
That being said, there are some people who may be allergic to it and will experience the opposite effects than those listed above when used. To discover if you may be allergic, rub a small amount of Aloe Vera to the inside of the arm or behind the ear. If a rash or burning sensation develops within a few minutes, do not use Aloe Vera and wash it off of your skin.
Drug Interactions:
- Oral Corticosteroids:The internal use of Aloe Vera sap, being one of many herbs that have a laxative effect on the body, could theoretically increase the loss of electrolytes that are associated with the use of corticosteroids. Discuss this possible interaction with your health practitioner.
- Topical Corticosteroids: Check with your health practitioner regarding the topical use of Aloe Vera remedies with Topical Corticosteroids.
Did You Know…?
- The Aloe family contains about 200 species, the most popular for healing being the Aloe Vera – botanically known as Aloe Barbadenisis.
- The word "Vera" is a Latin word meaning "true" and was given to this particular species of Aloe because in ancient times, it was thought to have the best medicinal properties of all the Aloe species. More recently however, it has been found that some of the other species in the Aloe family work just as well.
- Although Aloe resembles cacti in appearance, the species is actually a perennial (lives longer than two years) succulent belonging to the Lily family.
- The earliest recording of Aloe's many medicinal uses is from a set of Egyptian papers known as thePapyrus Ebers, written in 1500 B.C., claiming Aloe's use for many centuries before its writing.
.jfif)
