Food & Nutrition
Aloe Vera Juice Health Benefits For Skin, Face, Hair & Weight Loss… Common Side Effects
Health Benefits Of Aloe Vera Juice? For Skin,Face, Hair & Weight Loss… Common Side Effects
Aloe vera also known as the ?Wonder Plant? is a wild plant that has a myriad of properties that make it useful as remedy for many health conditions. Because of its many uses, many people now raise it in their homes mainly to obtain Aloe Gel, the thick sap that comes out when you break the leaf. It is used to add flavour to food, in cosmetic products, as food supplement and as natural remedy for many diseases. The use of Aloe vera as herbal remedy was first documented a medical record of Egyptian origin called Ebers Papyrus.
It was referred to as ?the plant of immortality? by the Egyptians because of its numerous uses to cure illnesses. This healing plant originates from Arabia but has been accepted and used worldwide for centuries to cure many ailments both internal and external. It typically has a short stem or no stem at all. It can grow up to at least 60cm and the leaves are serrated, thick and succulent. ?This article will be looking at the several uses of Aloe vera for everyday life and the side effects of using the plant so that you will decide if to use it or not, but most people find it very useful with minimal or no side effects.
Health Benefits of Aloe vera for the skin and face
Aloe vera has many uses for the skin. First of all, it helps to prevent/treat sunburns by acting at the surface of the skin when applied topically. It protects the skin and keeps its moisture level high the skin heals fast because it contains antioxidants and other nutritional properties that make it effective in healing sunburns. The antioxidants such as Vitamin C, Beta carotene and Vitamin E also act to reduce wrinkles and keep the skin firm and hydrated thus reducing ageing.
Aloe vera also helps to moisturize the skin without making it sticky although the gel is applied on the skin, making it suitable even for people with oily skin. It is good for women who use synthetic make-ups to apply Aloe vera before applying such make up to keep the face moist. It can also be used by men as after shave since it has healing properties for cuts that may be as a result of razor use.
Another major use of Aloe vera is to treat acne or pimples because it contains Auxin and Gibberelins which reduce facial inflammations and heal wounds caused by to acne by encouraging the growth of new cells resulting in fast healing and reducing scars. It is also very effective in reducing the visibility of stretch marks.
Health Benefits of Aloe vera for weight loss
Apart from its uses for the skin, Aloe vera is also a proven remedy for weight loss. Many people struggle with excess weight and have tried many different methods that don?t work. If you are one of such people then you are in the right place. Aloe vera is effective to lose weight because it contains polysaccharides and antioxidants that detoxifies and keeps the body free from oxidants, a state that is required for you to lose weight in a healthy fashion. Regular consumption of Aloe vera juice, known as aloe juice, increases metabolism through regulation of bowel movement thus facilitating the burning of calories in the body leading to weight loss. It also contains vitamin B which cuts don the deposition of fat in the body and controls the appetite therefore making it easier to lose weight.
Health Benefits of Aloe vera for hair
?Aloe vera is very useful for maintaining the hair because it has proteolytic enzymes that help to rejuvenate the skin of the scalp. It conditions the hair when regularly applied, making thee it to shine and be smooth. The ingredients in Aloe vera also encourage hair growth and prevents itching of the scalp and also reduces dandruff.
Health Benefits of Aloe vera drink or juice
As we have seen earlier, Aloe vera has so many medicinal applications as herbal remedy. But that is not all because there are much more benefits from drinking Aloe vera juice than just weight loss. One of such benefits is that it maintains the PH balance of the body. Aloe vera is alkaline in nature so it helps to bring the acidic PH of the body up to an alkaline state thus reducing the activities of pathogens in the body. Because Aloe vera is a succulent plant, it also helps in keeping the body hydrated. This helps to remove oxidants by purging to remove all unwanted substances from the system. Since it contains many essential vitamins, aloe juice helps body organs to function optimally. The drink is also great for removing of lactic acid in the body after exercise those maintaining the freshness of the body.
Drinking Aloe vera juice is also essential to keep the liver optimally functional because it is a key organ for detoxifying the body to keep it healthy. Since Aloe vera supplies the body with nourishment and keeps it healthy, it creates a perfect environment for the liver to perform its detoxification function.
Not only that, the enormous quantity of water in Aloe vera keeps the intestines hydrated if you drink it. This makes it easy for you to empty your bowels regularly and of course eliminates constipation. The juice also helps to maintain the normal flora in the gut thus maintaining digestion function as well. Aloe vera also serves as food supplement because it is full of nutrients that will nourish your body and ensure you don?t lack any important nutrients. The presence of these vitamins and nutrients will boost your immune system to fight pathogens that may want to cause sickness. Because Aloe vera contains acid neutralizing properties, it is useful in reducing heartburns by regulating the secretion of Hydrochloric Acid in the stomach. It also helps to treat gastric ulcers. Aloe vera helps to digest fats and sugars because it contains enzymes that help to breakdown these foods.
How to make Aloe vera juice
Materials needed
- Two table spoonful of Aloe vera gel
- A cup of water, vegetable or fruit juice
- Desired quantity of sweetening agent
- Desired quantity of lemon juice
Recipe
- Wash the succulent Aloe vera leaves you have plucked. Use running water preferably so that it will remove dirt and sand from the leaf.
- Use a clean and dry piece of cloth to dry it by patting or rolling the Aloe vera inside between your palm to make sure it is completely dry.
- Use a pair of scissors or any sharp object to remove one of the thorny edges. Be careful not to get injured by the thorns.
- Now peel off the top layer of the leaf to expose the succulent mass inside. After the outer covering there is also a yellow layer. Make sure you remove it completely too.
- Use a spoon or knife to scoop the clear gel and throw away any gel that has the green or yellow pigment. That one is potentially harmful.
- This is the gel that you will use to mix with any drink so put it in a dry container and store in your refrigerator.
- You can prepare the juice at any time for consumption by adding two table spoonful to a glass of any fruit or vegetable juice and blending. You can also add it to ordinary water, coconut water, or any other drink and add sugar or any sweetener to your taste and enjoy your drink.
- It should be consumed immediately after blending.
Aloe vera side effects
As we have already seen in the above, Aloe vera has many medicinal values that cut across all aspects of human health. However like any other ?medicine?, it has some side effects unless the juice is decolourised or purified, thus reducing the anthraquinone content of the gel. Side effects of unpurified Aloe vera juice include diarrhea which can cause dehydration, cramping, benign tumours and colon cancer with prolonged use.
Aloe vera juice can also interacts with drugs that contain substrates of Cytochrome P450 3A4 and CY2D6 such as sevoflurane. It is therefore advisable to not drink aloe juice when taking such drugs as the juice may aggravate the side effects of those drugs like causing more blood if you are getting a surgery. Therefore it is advisable to check with to consult your doctor before drinking Aloe juice if you are on such drugs.
The benefits of Aloe vera have just been explained and it will be useful to you too so why not go and try it? Although it has side effects, you can take precautions to make sure it doesn?t happen to you by consulting your doctor before taking the juice or using it for any other health remedy if you are using other drugs.
Overall, the benefits of using Aloe vera far outweigh the disadvantages so I encourage you to use it and you will be happier for it. Any comments? Drop them in the comment section. Thanks for reading.
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