Aloe Preparation
The aloe plant is used in skin treatments, health tonics and even hair-care products for its healing properties. Sometimes the aloe extracts may be diluted or processed too much to give you the plant's full benefits but if you have an aloe vera plant and a few simple tools you will have no problem making the preparations yourself.-
Making Aloe Gel
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Aloe leaves are filled with a gel which is useful for treating cuts, sunburns and minor burns as well as skin irritations, to aid healing. This natural aloe gel, however, should first be separated from the aloin, a yellowish juice that oozes out from the surface of the cut leaves. First, cut off a large leaf and cut it lengthwise to get to the gel inside. Scoop the gel out and put it into a bowl, taking care to avoid the yellow juice as much as possible. If the yellow juice gets mixed up with the gel, you can mix it with an equal amount of water and boil it for 5 minutes to destroy the aloin.
Using Aloe Gel
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There are several different ways to use aloe gel to treat minor skin complaints. Most obviously, you can rub the gel directly on the skin. You can leave it uncovered or cover it with a bandage to keep the gel moist and prevent it from rubbing off. You may also soak a gauze bandage in it before wrapping the affected part of the body with the bandage. Finally, you can add water to the aloe until it is thin enough to spray through a spray bottle, then spray it on the irritated area. No matter how you choose to use the gel, reapply it about once every two hours.
Aloe Juice
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Aloe vera can also be drank as a health tonic. After boiling the aloe vera gel, wait for it to cool and put it in a blender with equal parts of some citrus juice, such as orange juice, and blend until the two are mixed, then pour it into a bowl. To use it, mix 2 to 4 tbsp. of the aloe into a glass of water. Drink the juice twice daily. You can drink more or less of the aloe as you wish.
Aloe has been used to treat Type 2 diabetes as well as Crohn's disease and other inflammatory bowel conditions, but should not be used to treat any disease without your doctor's supervision.
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