Aloe Vera Blog

Why Aloe is Your Best bet for Good Health

Many people see the claims being made on this site and others about the amazing beauty benefits of aloe vera.
Is it really that great for your skin?

Can you prove it?

The simple answer to all your questions is Yes! Aloe contains internal benefits for the body. Aloe vera juice contains leaf pulp that is rich in natural nutrients and fiber.

If you’re tired of hearing that aloe has “all these vitamins,” here’s a definitive list of what you can find in this rich plant.

Aloe Vitamins

Vitamin B-12 (Provides your body with energy.)

Folic Acid (Helps make new cells.)

Choline (Helps sends signals between the cells.)

Vitamins A, C, and E (Serve as antioxidants that help protect cells against damage that can lead to lead to heart disease and cancer.)

Aloe Minerals

Calcium (strong bones)

Zinc (better immune and digestive function)

Selenium (prevent coronary heart disease)

Magnesium (essential for metabolic functions)

Chromium (provides enhanced insulin that gives cells energy)

Copper (helps in the formation of collagen)

Manganese (supports healthy bone metabolism)

Potassium (relief from stroke, blood pressure, heart, anxiety, and stress)

Sodium (Helps enzymes with muscle contraction)

Honorable Mention

On top of all that, aloe vera also contains ingredients that act as anti-inflammatories. These are helpful with any skin irritation. That’s why it’s used in a lot of skin-care products on the market right now. The hype on aloe is very justified.

We highly recommend that you look into growing and making your own aloe products to start getting all these amazing health benefits from one simple plant that’s as durable as a cactus and one that you can buy for under 10 bucks.

Conclusion

The overview is that aloe vera helps boost your immune system and provides your bones, heart, and blood pressure some much need relief. It can also help you prevent cancer development.

All-in-all this is one useful plant.

Where to Buy Aloe Seeds and Plants

As with most every plant, you have two options. You can either by a start plant and transfer it to your garden or you can buy seeds to tart growing the plant from scratch.

We recommend buying a starting plant, especially if you want to start harvesting your aloe vera as soon as possible. We will show you where to buy both for the lowest price but we’ll start with a starter plant so you can get cracking right away.

Buying a Starter Aloe Plant

Starter plants are younger versions of the plant you want to grow into a monster when you transfer it into your garden at home.

The most common and cheapest place to pick up a starter aloe plant is Home Depot. You can find these guys for around 10 bucks and they are roughly 12 inches tall when you buy them, coming in a 4-inch pot. When you’re planting it in your garden, though, expect for a space of about 3 feet in height.

Home Depot and Lowes both have shipping options but even they recommend taking the time to pick up the plant yourself for obvious reasons.

Buying Aloe Vera Seeds

This is actually more difficult than you think. Not too many places carry aloe seeds all the time and even Home Depot might not have them in stock.

The easiest and cheapest way to get aloe seeds is through Amazon.

Do you want just one aloe plant? How about 20? You can get a back of 20 aloe seeds from amazon for half the price you’d pay for a starter plant. The only trouble is the waiting period. If you’re worried about not having success growing the plant from seeds, never fear.

Aloe plants are tough and resilient; you’ll have no problem growing this plant in a warm and sun-rich environment. We actually have an entire page on helping you grow your aloe plant that you can check out, here.

So it’s pretty easy to get started with your own aloe plant, no matter the path you choose. What are you waiting for? Get out there and start gardening and enjoying your homemade aloe products!

 </p> <p>

Uses for Aloe You Probably Didn’t Know About

You’ve probably seen the wonders of aloe work their magic to help with sunburns and other skin irritations but few people know the other health benefits of aloe.

Aloe is rich in vitamins and antioxidants that help stave off a number of illnesses and keep your body strong by supporting your immune system.

This plant can accomplish a lot. If you’ve been on the verge of going to the store and buying this plant, let us help you make the final decision by showing you all these other benefits you could be enjoying with an aloe plant of your own!

5 Things You Didn’t Know About Aloe Vera

IBS and Digestion is a problem that plagues many people today. Aloe vera has two different enzymes that encourage healthy digestion (amylase and lipase).

This may actually go hand-in-hand with the IBS. People with IBS often experience discomfort constipation, diarrhea, and really bad gas. After using aloe foods and gels, people with IBS often reported reduced severity in these symptoms.

Keeping a healthy heart is tough to do in the stressful environment we find ourselves sin every day. The compound Phytosterols is found in aloe plants and it helps to balance cholesterol. A recent study found that people who consumed aloe saw healthy blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol levels.

Your teeth could also benefit from a dose of aloe. Using mouthwashes and toothpastes that contained aloe help fought off bacteria that caused a common mouth fungus. Ingesting aloe helps with healthy bone development because of the calcium in it.

If you’re worried about aging then we have some good news for you as well. Aloe gel has vitamins and antioxidants that help smooth and replenish skin. Most beauty products that boast anti-aging success use aloe as their key ingredient. Why not go directly to the source?

Immunity is key to staying healthy. To keep a powerful immune system you need to provide your body with the right stuff. What aloe does for your body is support nutrient absorption, allowing your body to take in and keep what it needs to stay healthy.

All has everything you need to stay healthy and keep your skin glowing, all in one very inexpensive plant that you can grow from the comfort of your backyard.

Harvesting Aloe Gel from Your Plant

If you’ve bought or planted your own aloe plant and found success with thick leaves, you might be wondering “what’s next.”
It’s time to reap the benefits of your green thumb by getting out the important essences of your aloe plant, the gel. It’s actually a lot easier than you’d expect too.

Start by taking a think leaf, the biggest one on your aloe plant and getting some shears so you can cut it off from the base without pricking yourself on the sharp thorns on the side.

How to Harvest Aloe Vera

After you have your aloe leaf you have to avoid some common mistakes that people do. Know that aloe leaves contain a yellow sap, called aloin.

This stuff is strong and bitter. If you ingest it, it’ll cause some major stomach aches so you need to avoid this stuff by holding down the cut end of your aloe leaf and letting the yellowish stuff drain out. Doing this has the added bonus of making your aloe mixtures sweeter.

Next, wash your leaf and cut off the edges with the thorns. You should then take a very fine knife and cut off the skin from all other sides of your leaf. You should now there’s a yellowish layer underneath. This also needs to be cut away.

You want to stop when you reach a clear white layer of translucent skin. This is the core and what you’ll want to use for all your homemade aloe products. Give your newly cut aloe leaf a good wash when you get to this layer.

That’s pretty much it. From here, you can choose to make whatever you want from this white juicy material.

We recommend that you find a suitable container for your aloe gel before you start cutting the leaf. You can choose to throw it in a smoothie, make them into ice cubes for drinks, and a million other things.

We have all the resources you need to take that aloe gel and make it into whatever you need! Check out our other pages to see what you can do with it.

Difference between Store Aloe and the Plant

Many people spend their money on aloe products at stores like Walmart, Target, and CVS. But, is there really a difference between spending all your money at the store and growing the actually plant in your home for virtually nothing?

I’m not talking about the difference in cost. I mean the usability, and can people actually make a product from their aloe plants that are equal to store-bought products?

You might be surprised by the answer.

Let’s start with some of the most popular brands that were surveyed a few years back:

Walmart’s Equate Aloe after Sun Gel,
Target’s Up & Up Aloe Vera Gel
CVS Aftersun Aloe Vera Moisturizing Gel

The most surprising fact about these products is that they contain no aloe vera at all. They may have since changed the ingredients for their store-brand products. But, when studies were conducted they found a cheap sugar-based ingredient called maltodextrin.

You might not be getting what you’re paying for in the first place so why take the risk when making your own is so much cheaper to begin with.

Let’s take a look at a direct example of an aloe gel from Target and assume they’re actually using real aloe.

Target’s Aloe Vera Gel by Up and Up contains “Water, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Alcohol Denat., Glycerin, Polysorbate 20, Carbomer, Triethanolamine, Benzophenone-4, Phenoxyethanol, Benzyl Alcohol, Fragrance, Yellow 5, and Blue 1.”

That’s a lot more than just aloe you’re getting with that high cost but are those ingredients good for you. Take a look at some of the reviews for this product.

So why on Earth would you want to spend more for needless additions and the possibility of falsely advertised ingredients?

Simple, most people don’t know how to properly grow and make their own aloe at home. The process of making gel seems strange too, like you have to be a chemist in a lab to do so.

That’s simply not true. Getting aloe gel is as easy as cutting the leaf of your plant in half and draining the clear liquid inside.

That’s it! We even show you how to do it!

From there, you can use online resources to add better ingredients like coconut oil to make your gel that much more effective.

The truth is you can grow and make your own aloe products for dirt cheap and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Check out how you can start growing and making your own aloe product without free resources, here.

How to Apply an Aloe Vera Face Mask

We’ve talked about using aloe vera gels for your face but many people have been wondering the proper way to apply aloe to the face in general.
There are many solutions you can make at home and we have a few articles pertaining to the subject of making your own already.

Before you start to apply your own aloe gel to your skin, decide which aloe gel or juice. It’s actually a lot simpler than you might think.

Steps to Applying an Aloe Vera Face Mask

Start by completely washing your face with warm water to get rid of all the dirt and grime from the day.

Next, whichever type of aloe you want to use, gel or juice, you will simply take that solution and rub it gently on your face in tiny circles until you have the entirety of your face covered, like a mask.

The process generally takes about 20 minutes to complete or “dry.”

Once the mask is dry, you’ll peel it off with clean hands then wash your face in warm water.

After you rinse, make sure to dry it with a towel, using the patting method. Aloe vera is very strong and will sink deeply into your pores. You want to be as gentle as possible when apply, washing, and drying the solution on and off your face.

After using any aloe vera face mask over a period of time, you will develop your own system for maximum efficiency.

If you’re wondering “what happens if I leave the mask on for longer than 20 minutes?” Don’t worry. There are no real harms to leaving a small solution of aloe vera on your face. The aloe vera face mask simply dries, making your skin feel stiff (which will help you remember to take it off).

Aloe Vera Salad

There are a lot of people wondering if it’s okay to eat aloe vera, aside from making smoothies. The simple answer is “yes.” You can treat aloe vera almost like tofu. The clear gel inside has a similar consistency to the vegan alternative food too. One of the best ways to prepare your aloe meal is in the form of a salad. There are a ton of recipes online for this but I’ll just give you an example to get you started on a healthy new way to make salads.

First, you’re going to need some prep work if you’re growing your own aloe vera plants. You need to fillet your aloe plant by holding down the flat side of an aloe leaf and cutting down as close to the gel as you can. You’ll eventually end up with thick pieces of translucent aloe jelly. These will be somewhat solid, again like tofu.

Now, cut those huge chunks of jelly into smaller strips, like you would for a chicken salad. Finally, use a strainer to rinse the strips and get off any remaining liquid left on your beautiful aloe vera gel pieces.

The Rest of your Aloe Vera Salad

Wash and dice a small handful of chopped arugula leaves and place them in a bowl with your aloe strips.
Cut up some sliced tomatoes.
Add a spring mix of lettuce and spinach leaves.
Add a dash of garlic powder.
Add a small amount of kelp powder.
Finally, toss and chill the mix in the fridge.
Add a very small amount of raspberry vinaigrette dressing and salad tortilla chips (optional).

Obviously, you can create a salad using any combination of ingredients you like. The general idea is to cut and rinse your aloe into strips to use with your salads.

It should be noted that aloe has a slightly sweeter taste than most salad ingredients. You can either tone this down with saltier ingredients or complement the sweeter taste with mint, tomato, or lemon juice.

Aloe Vera gel for Stretch Marks

Aloe vera has long been associated for its ability to heal the skin. You’ll find it in many beauty treatments, lotions, burn creams, and more. That’s what usually gets people wondering if it can help with stretch marks.

Also known as striae, stretch marks can be caused by a number of things but most commonly after giving birth.

Most people hate the way these look on their body and actively seek new ways to get rid of them with medical treatments.

In addition to stretch mark creams, aloe vera can be used as a supplement to help heal the skin, especially if you apply it early on. One of the foremost experts on skincare, the Mayo Clinic, has rated aloe vera products like gel and juice as a “C” on “A” to “F” scale for helping with stretch marks.

This makes the cheap and easily accessible plant an ideal source for healing stretch marks in addition to prescribed creams and bandages.

Applying Aloe Vera Get to Stretch Marks

We have already made a number of articles that show you how to make your own aloe gel. Start by choosing the method that’s most convenient for you and making your own gel at home.

Of course, you can also go out and buy aloe gel at most stores; it’s just a lot cheaper. The reason being that you’ll need to apply aloe gel to the area of your body with stretch marks at least once a day, which can become costly.

To apply the solution, take a fingertip of the gel and rub it gently on your stretch marks, massaging it deeply into the skin.

As an added bonus, you might feel a sense of relief, as fresh stretch marks can be slightly painful. While aloe vera doesn’t heal the damaged skin completely, it has been seen to reduce the visibility of stretch marks considerably and have a soothing sensation to boot.

Aloe Vera for Diabetes

The aloe vera plant is something that all diabetics should carry in their home at all times. No, it’s not a cure for the disease or any outrageous claim like that but it does have a lot of benefits that help people who suffer from diabetes.

Many people are unaware of the added heart, liver, and kidney risks that come along with diabetes and grow worse as a result.
Adding aloe vera as a staple in your diet can help ease some of the more debilitating symptoms of diabetes.

It should be noted that the below items are even better for those that suffer from hyperglycemia (increased glucose levels in the blood) as well.

Why Should Diabetics Use Aloe Vera

Reducing blood sugar levels is one of the many benefits the aloe vera plant can give you. A study involving mice showed lowered levels in the HbA1c test (a test for diabetics). This could make a considerable improvement to your overall health as well.

Aloe vera also lowers cholesterol. Diabetes is notorious for creating heart disease and heart-related issues, high cholesterol being one of the main culprits. Aloe has proven to lower bad cholesterol levels by protecting the heart.

Another thing that diabetes goes after is the liver and kidneys. Aloe also serves to protect these two organs from oxidation stress and continuous damage to tissues that can be caused by having diabetes.

While aloe vera may not treat diabetes itself, it does help the body from side-affects that come with the disease in a straightforward kind of way.

Even better, aloe vera is easy to grow in your home and make your own products at a low cost, unlike other medicines that accomplish the same goal. We, at AloeVera.com have provided you with all the information you need to get started growing and producing your own aloe vera products at home.

If you’re someone that suffers from diabetes, then give this supplement a try (in addition to doctor-recommended medications) today.