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8 Wonderful Health Benefits Of Using Aloe Vera

You may have heard that the Aloe Vera plant has many great qualities that can help your health but you may be unaware of all of them. You may even be surprised at some of the great things Aloe Vera can do for you.

If you are like myself you probably know that Aloe Vera can be used to help heal a sunburn. I remember as a kid that we would always have Aloe Vera gel in the house in case someone got burnt so that we could lather it on and feel the instant cooling sensation.

However besides just using Aloe Vera as a way to heal your skin after a sunburn it has many other amazing health properties that we will be discussing today in this blog post.

Enjoy this wonderful list of health benefits of Aloe Vera and don't forget to share this information with your friends.

What Is Aloe Vera?

Now before we get into too much detail about what Aloe Vera can do for you lets dive in a little bit and discuss exactly what Aloe Vera is.

Aloe Vera is a very short-stemmed or stemless succulent plant that grows anywhere between 60 - 100 cm tall and spreads by offsets. The leaves are very thick and fleshy and inside the leaves is the juices that many people use to heal sunburns. The leaves are green to grey-green in color and also sometimes include white flecks on the lower and upper stem surfaces.

The Aloe Vera plant has the ability to store water in its thick leaves which allows it to last through droughts just like that of a cactus.

Aloe Vera was initially introduced to southern Europe and China is the 17th century and today can be found in most grocery and health stores across the country.

Now that we know what the Aloe Vera plant is lets get into the details of why the plant can be good for our health.

1. Anti-Everything Elements

Aloe Vera has a phytochemical content which is said to make the plant have antibacterial, antimicrobial, and antifungal properties. In addition aloe also contains antioxidants which also help keep us healthy.

Studies have been done that say aloe vera can be effective against such bacteria as Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Streptococcus pyogenes.

2. Hand Sanitizer

If you are looking for an alcohol free hand sanitizer then you should try aloe vera.

It works well to fight germs and is a sting-free hand sanitizer.

As usually you can put some of it on your hands and rub it in and let it do all the hard work.

Aloe vera gel can also be used to wash vegetables and fruit.

3. Immunity Booster

Aloe vera has a higher pH level which tends to be more acidic and therefore when its absorbed and digested it helps the body produce more hydrochloric acid which helps improve digestion.

It is believed by some that allergy sufferers have underlying digestive issues which prevent them from absorbing nutrients which help ward off allergy symptoms.

Therefore by having a more healthy digestive system you allow your body to have a greater chance of fending off allergies.

4. Faster Healing & Relief From Skin Irritation

A perfect example of this is when you get a sunburn and you put aloe vera on your skin to help cool and heal your skin after it has been burnt from the sun.

Studies have been done to compare the benefits of Vaseline to help heal burnt skin compared to aloe vera and aloe vera helped heal the skin significantly more quickly in the studies.

The average healing time for people who used Vaseline was 18 days while the people who used aloe vera only took on average 12 days to heal.

Aloe vera helps stimulate the growth of healthy skin cells and limits the body's production of scar tissue which helps in the aid of healing burnt skin.

5. Decrease Inflammation With IBS

Just like how the gel-like middle of the aloe vera plant can coat and heal your skin it can do similar things with coating the lining of your digestive tract if you drink it.

There was a review done by SFGate that states drinking Aloe vera juice can help decrease inflammation caused by irritable bowel syndrome, colitis and other disorders that cause inflammation in the gut.

6. Helps With Ulcers

Ulcerative colitis is a form of inflammatory bowel disease that causes inflammation and ulcers in the colon.

Similar to how aloe vera helps IBS it has been shown in studies to help ulcerative colitis. In the study 44 patients received an oral aloe vera gel treatment or a placebo of 200 mL daily for 4 weeks and those patients who had the aloe vera showed signs of improvement.

7. Mouthwash

Aloe vera is a great natural alternative to chlorhexidine mouthwash.

A study was done showed that aloe vera was as effective as chlorhexidine to remove plaque from teeth.

Therefore if you are considering a natural alternative for a mouthwash you should consider trying aloe vera.

8. Oral And Topical Uses

In addition to the 7 benefits above here are a few ways you can use aloe vera orally or topically for a number of different reasons.

Please note that its possible that not enough research has been done to provide that you will receive any health benefits from using aloe vera in some of the suggested ways below.

• Eyebrow Gel
• Canker Sores
• Skin Moisturizer
• Diaper Rash Cream
• Constipation Relief
• After Shave Gel
• Anti Wrinkle Cream
• Eye Makeup Remover

Conclusion

In conclusion there are many benefits from the use of Aloe Vera. However before you use aloe vera to treat any of these health ailments it is suggested that you consult with your doctor or physician to make sure you are taking the right course of action.

Some of the studies done to prove that aloe vera has helped in a positive manor have been very small and may not be fully conclusive.

Additionally if you are interested in using a more natural way to take care of your body you may want to consider using aloe vera for some of the reasons mentioned above.

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