Monday, July 4, 2011

Aloe Vera Uses: Magic in the Leaves


The aloe vera plant is one of nature's miracle plants. It's extracts are commonly employed as a considerable ingredient in commercial beauty products, but often is not as effective as the 100% healthy extract. The optimal choice for aloe vera is to select to use the organic mixture, which is free of chemicals and residues you want to stay away from. A wide range of people pick natural aloe vera gel created straight from the leaves to repair a multitude of symptoms. Aloe vera uses continue to expand day to day due to its superfood status. So what is aloe vera and how can it aid you?

Aloe vera is a plant that is believed to have originated in the Sudan and grows in arid climates and is widely distributed in Africa, India, and other dry areas. The leaves are lengthy and prickly looking, much like a porcupine. The superlative present from the aloe plant is in its leaves. When snipped from the plant and peeled, the leaves embody a thick, clear jelly-like material. This is called aloe vera gel. The gel can also be processed to make juice, which a great many people consume on a day by day basis because of the health rewards. Aloe is established as a miracle ingredient in lots of homeopathic remedies and has been utilized for centuries because of its healing properties. Now even more betterments to this marvelous plant have been uncovered such as:

Helps heal wounds and burns
Treats skin infections, acne, and rashes
Heals cysts
Anti-bacterial and anti-fungal
Lessens sugar levels (great for diabetics)
Cure colds
Cuts down on menstrual cramps

What makes the aloe vera plant, expressly the gel, so incredibly healing? The answer lies in its constituents. The main ingredient in aloe vera is mucopolysaccharides [MPS] (stretched-chain sugars) that have very robust antiseptic, anti inflammatory, anti-viral, anti tumor and immune transforming properties proven scientifically. MPS help the immune system and pass directly into cells and the circulatory system. The other biologically active compounds have other alternative properties and include:

acetylated mannans
polymannans
anthraquinone C-glycosides
anthrones
anthraquinones
lectins


These substances work synergistically to help mend the body both within and externally.

Here are additional uses for aloe vera:

Can be applied as a laxative
Brings relief to insect bites
Restore health to ulcers
Calm a nauseated stomach
Reduce inflammation and ache from denture pain
Good for dandruff
Moisturizing healthy ingredient in cosmetics and facial masks


The critical thing to remind yourself when choosing aloe vera is to go with the organic mixture since commercial brands can be 90% water. In actuality, the optimal thing to do is to choose the actual aloe leaf that you can extract the gel from. It is quite straight forward to do once you get the hang of it. Be sure to refrigerate the leaf to keep it fresh. There are a lot of aloe vera uses and if you make a choice to consume it or apply it to your skin, you will reap the betterments.