Aloe Vera

Pretty much every day, I open up a thick green aloe vera leaf. I slice one side and carefully peel the leaf open, then slide my knife along the bottom of the thick gel. My favorite part of this whole ritual is picking up the aloe vera gel and sliding my hands over it; the feeling of the sap transports me back to my goopy childhood. I was always getting into stuff I shouldn't because I craved the touch and sensations of different textures. I turn my water on and run the gel between my hands, cleaning off the bitter sap before slipping the floppy piece of gel into my smoothie. I blend for about 10 seconds and enjoy my smoothie. (These days, the aloe joins frozen bananas, spinach, and blueberries.) I promise you, it is pure heaven.

Why do I do this? I have always been drawn to aloe, even as a child. Perhaps it was my innocent intuition, but I always loved breaking into a leaf and finding relief from cuts, burns, scrapes, insect bites, or whatever other childhood oopsie on my skin was bothering me. I have been raw for a bit over two months now, and my thirst for learning has been insatiable. In my reading, I have noticed a recurring theme: aloe vera. What I've found out in these few short months is enough to make me cry with glee.

Since using aloe vera, I have noticed the following benefits: hydrated skin, no more eczema, and better um, number 2. I used to have this little patch of eczema under my chin and, no matter what lotion I used, I could never get rid of it. Within 4 days of using aloe, it disappeared. WOAH! Seriously, it's gone. Also, I haven't put a drop of my standard and faithful Vaseline Intensive Care on my skin in weeks and my skin is the smoothest and softest it has ever been. My number 2 - well, I'm not going to get into that. If you are raw, you understand the number of times you poo in a day is elevated over the SAD eater. Aloe helps A LOT.

Apart from my personal benefits, I put aloe all over my kids. Every scratch, bug bite, itch, and boo-boo gets coated with aloe. Ester SUPER LOVES playing with the goop, which is great antibacterial fun. It's amazing to watch all her scratches virtually disappear after applying aloe.

Here are some more benefits of aloe. I used multiple sources and, of course, I cannot prove a darn thing. I almost want to become a scientist JUST SO I CAN STUDY ALOE IN A LAB. That's how much I love this stuff.

• Halts the growth of cancer tumors.
• Lowers high cholesterol.
• Repairs “sludge blood” and reverses “sticky blood”.
• Boosts the oxygenation of your blood.
• Eases inflammation and soothes arthritis pain.
• Protects the body from oxidative stress.
• Prevents kidney stones and protects the body from oxalates in coffee and tea.
• Alkalizes the body, helping to balance overly acidic dietary habits.
• Cures ulcers, IBS, Crohn’s disease and other digestive disorders.
• Reduces high blood pressure natural, by treating the cause, not just the symptoms.
• Nourishes the body with minerals, vitamins, enzymes and glyconutrients.
• Accelerates healing from physical burns and radiation burns.
• Replaces dozens of first aid products, makes bandages and antibacterial sprays obsolete.
• Halts colon cancer, heals the intestines and lubricates the digestive tract.
• Ends constipation.
• Stabilizes blood sugar and reduces triglycerides in diabetics.
• Prevents and treats candida infections.
• Protects the kidneys from disease.
• Functions as nature’s own “sports drink” for electrolyte balance.
• Boosts cardiovascular performance and physical endurance.
• Speeds recovery from injury or physical exertion.
• Hydrates the skin, accelerates skin repair.

I found this list on Natural News, but similar lists and praise is available all over the internet. There are quite a few studies and published papers available for your perusal, too. I get my aloe from Aloe King. They've been good to me so far, and they are far less expensive than other sites I've found. Eat your aloe today!