Most folks know of the most common use of aloe vera for skin: treating burns. Did you know that there are many other applications for aloe?
I’ve used aloe vera in creams, toners, blended with lavender essential oil and straight! I find it has an astringent, toning and tightening nature which makes it an excellent toner on its own, to be used under a skin oil.
Being water-based, aloe can hydrate and moisturize. It is also soothing, cooling and extremely healing. It is used in Ayurveda to maintain beauty and decrease the signs of aging. It is also estrogenic, making it useful for women for vitalizing and toning the skin.
Aloe vera actually prevents sunburn for me! If I apply it immediately after sun exposure, I find the redness subsides immediately and turns to tan.
Click here to read more about the benefits and uses of aloe vera for skin.
Major Wound Healing Properties of Aloe
Aloe vera for skin is quite effective for wounds of all sorts, when used topically or internally. It has been used successfully for such serious wounds as caused by burns, frostbite, electrical injury, and drug abuse injection site abscesses. It actually can reverse tissue necrosis when used in these cases!
Aloe has demonstrated faster healing times following dermabrasion, reducing the chances of infection and skin discoloration upon healing. It is also used as a wound healer for sore and cracked nipples during breastfeeding.
Periodontal uses of aloe vera for include: acute mouth lesions, including cold sores, ulcers, canker sores and cracks around the lips. Aloe is also used with effective to remarkable results for chronic ulcers, eczema, minor injuries and poison ivy allergic reactions. It also shows anti-edemic and analgesic activity in the opportunistic infections experienced by diabetes patients. This is a a remedy you’ll want to have on hand!
The anti-inflammatory properties of aloe assist in its ability as a wound healer. It cools down burns and aides in cell-regeneration. The wound healing capacities include increasing tensile strength of the healed skin, so that it is able to be flexible and therefore stronger. It heals completely and without scarring.
Aloe Vera to Dry Up Acne
It is also highly useful for acne, as it is able to kill Proprionibacterium acnes, a bacteria that plays a major role in all types of acne. It has potent antibacterial effects against Streptococcus pyogenes, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli. To use it for acne, apply the aloe as a toner before putting on a moisturizer, morning and night.
Be Sure to Purchase Real Aloe Vera for Skin
If you are unable to grow the plant, be sure to purchase aloe vera that is free from additives. I like to buy my aloe vera at Mountain Rose Herbs. There are many products on the market touted as “aloe vera” that are actually comprised of very little of the actual plant. Aloe vera is a gel-like substance, clear in color and somewhat lumpy.
Reference: Wound Healing, Oral and Topical Activity of Aloe Vera, Clinical Abstracts.