Page 4 - Information about Aloe Vera

Aloe Vera 8.5 12pp final.qxd 1/15/06 2:22 PM Page 4

ALOE VERA
the health benefits

of the Aloe leaf. “Drug Aloes” are a prescription categories as follows.
medicine, i.e. they cannot be bought over the Anti-inflammatory
counter in the UK. The gels, juices or whole leaf Immune stimulatory
extracts referred to above are freely available for Pro-healing
purchase by the public as herbal drinks or Pro-gastrointestinal
powders. They are not permitted to contain Antidiabetic
significant levels of these laxative materials Anti-arthritic
(“aloin” and related compounds), and therefore Arterial
they do not have, or should not have, laxative The mechanisms of the immune stimulant effect
action. and the pro-healing effect are fairly well
Anyone who says they have heard that Aloe can understood. Whilst the anti-inflammatory effect is
upset the digestive system is probably thinking understood in principle, the contributions of the
of the effect of Drug Aloes and has failed to different components have yet to be worked out.
understand the clear distinction that should be
drawn between the two forms. Probably one will 5 Immune System Stimulation
never need to use Drug Aloes, which is really only A prime action of Aloe is to increase the activity
useful as a purgative. There are better laxatives and effectiveness of the immune system. Much is
available than Drug Aloes and they have nothing written these days about the importance of having
whatever to do with the main uses of Aloe vera one’s immune system in good health. A sufficient
juice and gel today. One should never allow any level of activity amongst the immune cells is a
reference to it to confuse one’s understanding of basic requirement.
the proper use of Aloe vera juice or gel. The uses

Aloe Vera is included in Aloe Vera is a succulent
cosmetics, toothpaste and plant of the lily family
shampoos, application to the which grows in warm
skin, scalp and teeth in these frost free climates.
forms may be beneficial.

of Aloe vera juice or gel are all connected with In a short review J.C. Pittman (1992) cited that
producing a harmless stimulation of body systems “Acemannan has direct effects on the immune
to produce improved functioning, relief of pain system, activating and stimulating macrophages,
and swelling and faster healing. There have been monocytes, antibodies and T-cells.” This is a wide
many cases of muddled thinking over this in the and multifaceted claim. Acemannan is a trade
media, often by writers who should know better. name that has been applied to one part of the
There are one or two exceptions to the above. especially potent mannose-rich polysaccharide
One is in the use of Aloe for diabetes. Here there fraction from Aloe. “Glucomannan” is the generic
are strong indications of the effectiveness of at name for the complete polysaccharide fraction.
least some components of the Drug Aloes. When Acemannan comprises the highest molecular
these have been used they are administered weight fraction of the glucomannan. T-cells are one
carefully to ensure that the dose given will not of the major classes of lymphocytes. Pittman also
produce a purgative effect. It is still true, though, says that Acemannan “has been shown in
that individuals should probably not use Drug laboratory studies to act as a bridge between
Aloes as a self-prescribed medicine. In the future, foreign proteins (such as virus particles) and
however, it seems possible that formulated anti- macrophages, facilitating phagocytosis.”
diabetic medicines may emerge in which Aloe Phagocytosis is the process in which immune cells
vera juice or extract is admixed with carefully engulf foreign and infective particles, including
selected individual components of Drug Aloes infective micro organisms, and then digesting
that will maximise the anti-diabetic action. We them. Therefore one cannot be surprised that
also know that “Drug Aloes” contains anti- Aloe vera is widely noted, within the research
inflammatory and anti-bacterial components that literature, as being protective against infections.
cannot be utilized without separation from the There are many studies showing that resistance to
purgative components. infection is enhanced by Aloe either in humans or
in animals, whether the infective agent is a
4 How does Aloe vera Work? bacterium, virus or fungus. In other cases the
pag The physiological and medicinal effects of Aloe immunostimulant effect manifests through
page 2e 2
are best understood by dividing them into increasing the power of the organism to either