Aloe Vera is commonly known as a miracle plant and with good reason. It is a highly medicinal plant that offers healing benefits for the body internally and externally. What’s more, it is accessible and easy to add into your day-to-day life for health and healing. Below are a few ways that you can use aloe vera in your health regime and as part of your natural medicine cabinet.
1. Soothe the digestive tract with aloe vera smoothies
Aloe vera has an incredibly soothing effect on the gut lining, promoting healing and reducing inflammation. It is effective at helping to maintain a healthy balance of bacteria in the gut. It has antibacterial and anti-fungal properties, along with prebiotic compounds that feed the good bacteria.
To use fresh aloe vera in your smoothies, cut a piece approximately 1 inches long and add the clear inner gel of the aloe plant to your smoothie. Alternatively, you can buy organic inner gel aloe vera juice. Here are two great smoothie recipes with aloe vera to get your started.
- 1 cut of aloe vera leaf or 1 tbsp of aloe vera juice
- 1 cup filtered water
- 1 cup of your favorite fruit (berries, pineapple, mango or any combination of fruit)
- Optional: raw honey to sweeten
Aloe Vera Cleansing Smoothie Recipe — Kimberly Snyder
This healing drink uses green tea as a base and includes aloe vera juice along with healthy greens, banana and pineapple.
2. Heal skin irritations, rashes and minor burns
Having your own aloe vera plant is incredibly helpful when it comes to healing skin rashes, irritations and burns. Aloe vera is highly soothing, just as it soothes the digestive tract, it does the same for our skin. It can help with dermatitis, heal wounds and treat minor burns and sunburn. It has cooling properties and it effectively reduces skin inflammation, encouraging skin cell tissue regeneration.
You can buy organic aloe vera gel to apply to the skin. Or if you have your own plant at home, follow these simple instructions to cut and fillet an aloe vera leaf to apply directly to the skin.
3. Use as a hair mask to moisturize and heal the scalp
Aloe vera’s hydrating properties make it an excellent moisturizer for dry hair, with the added bonus that it gives shine to your hair. Thanks to its antibacterial and anti-fungal properties, it also provides effective relief from an itchy scalp. High in enzymes, aloe vera can help to promote healthy new skin cells when applied to the scalp. Try this easy aloe vera hair mask. You can also add a little aloe vera gel to the ends of your hair in the morning to prevent split ends.
Aloe vera is an excellent example of how nature can provide us with the remedy. We hope you enjoy experimenting with aloe vera gel.
