By Dr Peter Atherton MB Chb, DObst RCOG, FRCGP
& Advisory Board Manager of Forever
Imagine slicing open an Aloe leaf and consuming the Gel directly from the plant. Forever's signature product, Aloe Vera Gel, is as close to the real thing as you can get. The first of its kind to receive certification by the International Aloe Science Council, this rich blend of pulp and liquid gives us a product as near to nature as possible. The proof is in the Aloe - after reading my top 10 reasons why I think you should drink Aloe Vera Gel, you will definitely see why Aloe Vera has earned the nickname 'the medicine plant'.
10. Effect on the gut
Aloe Vera has a wonderfully beneficial action on bowel function which results in smooth and efficient transit of contents, often eradicating inconvenient, colicky pain. This action, of course, is of great benefit to sufferers of Irritable Bowel Syndrome, a problem that affects about one in five people in the Western world at some stage during their life.
9. Assists in healthy digestion
A healthy digestive tract ensures that nutrients from the food we eat are absorbed into the bloodstream. There is clear, clinical evidence that by drinking Aloe Vera Gel the bowel is able to absorb these nutrients more efficiently, especially protein. I also suspect that many other substances are much better absorbed under its influence.
8. Effect on gut flora
Aloe Vera is a natural 'balancer' in many areas and nowhere more so that inside the gut, where it tends to regulate the various bacteria and yeasts that inhabit it. For example, if a person were to suffer with too much yeast in the gut, such as candida, regular ingestion of the Gel would tend to reduce this overgrowth. The same can be said of the more unfriendly bacteria that can accumulate in certain conditions.
7. Effect on the skin
When they are first produced deep in the epidermis skin cells are rather large and very much alive, but by the time they reach the surface after 21-28 days (in normal skin) they are a shadow of their former selves and are transformed into just thin flakes of keratin which eventually fall off. Aloe Vera Gel provides the essential nutrition to feed the basal cells and therefore the skin remains healthy and is able to perform its vital functions more efficiently - as well as looking much better!
6. Increases the activity of fibroblasts
Fibroblasts are specialised cells found in the skin and their job is to produce fibre such as collagen and elastin. These fibres give the skin its structure and, of course, make it look plump and elastic. This is fine from a cosmetic point of view but they are also extremely important in wound healing, as these fibres create a mesh or network over which the new skin cells advance to close the wound. The effect of Aloe Vera is to stimulate them to reproduce faster and therefore, being more of them, they make more fibre. The time taken for wound heal under the influence of Aloe Vera can be reduced by up to a third.
5. Antiviral activity
Within the mucilage layer of the leaf which surrounds the inner Gel there is a long chain sugar or polysaccharide. This has the capability of being able to help defend us against attacks by various viruses, from the common cold to the extremely nasty virus that can cause AIDS. This sugar has actually been extracted from Aloe Vera and made into a drug which, when give alongside regular antiviral agents in the treatment of AIDS, appears to have a synergistic effect, making the treatment more efficient.
4. Anti-inflammatory and pain killing effect
Among the substances that have been identified in Aloe Vera are several that are naturally anti-inflammatory and painkilling. People who take it regularly often find that inflammatory conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis or ulcerative colitis, are greatly benefited. Although we do not have the hard, clinical evidence, I believe that other inflammatory bowel conditions such as Crohn's disease and diverticulitis are also helped in many cases.
3. A useful source of minerals
Some of the minerals found in Aloe Vera include calcium, sodium, potassium, iron, chromium, magnesium, manganese, copper and zinc. This is because the plant tends to grow in areas where soils are rich in these minerals and its roots are able to absorb them and deliver them to us in a very available form.
2. A useful source of vitamins
Aloe Vera Gel contains a large number of vitamins - even trace elements of vitamin B12 which is rarely found in plants. Apart from vitamin A, it contains B-group vitamins, vitamin C, vitamin E and folic acid. Many of these vitamins cannot be stored by the body so we need to constantly top them up from the food that we eat. What better way than by drinking a daily amount of Aloe Vera Gel while at the same time building up the body's defence system against oxidative stress naturally?
1. A general tonic for good health
By drinking the Gel with all its important ingredients (often now deficient in our food) including 19 of the 20 amino acids needed by the human body, and seven of the eight essential ones that just cannot be made, the body is able to get enough to allow complex enzyme systems to work really well. This means the body can function at 100%. The net result to the individual is a wonderful feeling of wellbeing which tends to go with an improved ability to withstand and even fight illness.
As you can see from these 10 great reasons, taken daily - either alone or mixed with fruit juice or our other wonderful antioxidant product Pomesteen Power - Aloe Vera Gel is one of the best nutritional supplements available!
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