Aloe (Aloe Vera or Aloe Vera)

Name: Aloe (Aloe Vera or Aloe Vera)

ALOE BARBADENSIS MILL.

Asphodelian – Asphodelaceae (earlier: lily – Liliaceae).

Parts Used: Leaves.

Pharmacy name:aloe extract – Aloes extractum (formerly: Extractum Aloes), aloe tincture – Aloes tinctura (formerly: Tinctura Aloes). Botanical description: Aloe is a genus of the Asphodelaceae family, in which there are over 200 species. The center of their distribution is East and South Africa, although some species of the genus Aloe are also found in the Mediterranean and some parts of India. Aloe is awesome as an example. This is a truly stately plant with a stem that reaches a height of 2-3 m (sometimes even 6 m) and has numerous leaf scars, and at the top there is a powerful tuft of lanceolate leaves. The leaves are fleshy, about 50 cm long, 10-20 cm wide and 5 cm thick, with purple thorns, especially along the edge and on the underside. In the axils of the leaves in May-June, on long peduncles, inflorescences develop in the form of elongated brushes,

Collection and preparation. If the leaves are cut, then a watery juice flows out of them, unusually bitter in taste. It is he who is used to obtain a medical product. The juice is located in the secretory cells that surround the sieve part of the vascular bundle (on the cut, this layer of cells has the shape of a crescent). The leaves are cut and crushed so that the juice from them can be quickly collected in a vessel. Then it is thickened by evaporation over an open fire or in a water bath. After removing the foam, it is poured into vessels, where it solidifies. In this form, it is a pharmaceutical product, which is most often processed into herbal products (drops, pills, candles).

Active ingredients: aloin (hydroxianthracene derivative), resins and bitterness.

Healing action and application. Aloe is a powerful and reliable laxative (acknowledged by the German National Health Service) that works in the large intestine. Only as a galenic product or together with other laxative medicines, it is included in numerous laxatives in the form of drops, pills, tablets, dragees and suppositories. The tincture, extract and other products of aloe also play a role as bitter stomachic and to stimulate the secretion of the gallbladder.

Use in homeopathy. The original tincture of Aloe in dilutions from D4 is used in homeopathy for the weakness of the digestive organs. Partial treatment with this remedy is colitis (inflammation of the large intestine) involving the liver. As an external agent, the tincture is used for burns (including from X-ray exposure) and poorly healing wounds in the form of compresses (diluted with water 1:10).

Side effects. Aloe can cause kidney irritation only in case of overdose. When used correctly, aloe is easier to tolerate than one would think, knowing the composition of this plant. Pregnant women, as well as those who have a tendency to bleeding from the genital area, should not use aloe. Avoid prolonged use of aloe, as in this case, excessive excretion of minerals (especially potassium) from the body is not excluded. You can not use aloe and intestinal obstruction; this applies to all strong laxatives.