Aloe vera, known as the "true aloe," grows freely in arid climates, particularly in Africa and India. Scientific studies show that aloe vera juice might have health benefits and generally is considered safe as long as the potentially toxic compound aloin is removed during the manufacturing process. Aloin sometimes is used as a laxative. Consult your doctor before trying to prevent, treat or cure any condition with aloe vera juice.
Gastric Ulcers
Aloe vera juice can benefit the stomach because it has a balancing effect on hydrochloric acid. When levels of hydrochloric acid are too high, conditions like stomach aches and ulcers can occur. A study published in 2010 in the "Journal of American Science" found that aloe vera juice taken in combination with opuntia ficus juice, from a type of cactus, healed gastric ulcers in rats after two weeks of supplementation.
Salmonella
Aloe vera is an anti-inflammatory, so might help alleviate some of the inflammation caused by salmonella infection. Salmonella are bacteria that lead to side effects like stomach pain, diarrhea, nausea and cramps. A study published in August 2008 in "Phytotherpay Research" found that aloe reduced inflammation in experimental animals exposed to salmonella.
Wound Healing
There is evidence that aloe vera juice might help accelerate wound healing. A study published in 2008 in the "Journal of Ethnopharmacology" found that aloe vera juice applied topically to the skin of rat and rabbit experimental models facilitated wound healing. It also prevented microbial infection during the healing process.
Polysaccharides
Some of the health benefits of aloe vera juice can be attributed the polysaccharides that it contains. In fact, aloe leaf juice was found to have almost two and a half times the amount of polysaccharides of aloe leaf gel, according to the findings of a study published in January 2011 in the "Journal of the Taiwan Institute of Chemical Engineers." Polysaccharides have many functions, including energy provision for cellular work, and are thus required for sustaining life.
References
- "Journal of American Science"; Effect of Watery Juice of Aloe Vera and Opuntia Ficus Leaves on Gastric Acid Secretion and Healing of Acute Gastric Ulcer in Rats; Reham A. Mohamed, Maysa M. El Malah &Reham S. Ramadan; 2010
- Wiley Online Library; Phytotherapy Research; Phytomodulatory potentials of Aloe vera against Salmonella OmpR-mediated inflammation; Praveen Rishi, Anjali Rampuria, Rupinder Tewari, et al.; August 2008
- "Journal of Ethnopharmacology"; Preliminary Evaluation, The Effects of Aloe Ferox Miller and Aloe Arborescens Miller on Wound Healing; Yimei Jia, Guodong Zhao, &Jicheng Jia; November 2008
- "Journal of the Taiwan Institute of Chemical Engineers; Comparison of the Polysaccharides Isolated from Skin Juice, Gel Juice and Flower of Aloe Arborescens Tissues; X.L. Chang, Y.M. Fenga & W.H. Wang; January 2011
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