What you need to know about "Aloe" before reading the research. 

See next page for what you need to know about Research Methods before reading the research reports.

This site documents over 300 pieces of medical and scientific “aloe” research. But the term “aloe” can mean many different things. Even some researchers get confused, too.

Aloe Vera is a cactus-like plant. There are over 300 species of Aloe. There are four main ones – aloe ferox miller, aloe perry baker, aloe arborescens, aloe barbadensis miller.  Aloe Barbadensis Miller is the most widely used. 

Aloe extracts are derived from the tough leathery leaves or the clear gel found inside the leaves. Each of these parts of the plant have very different pharmacalogical properties.

Aloe extracts from the leaves can be referred to as sap or latex. They are usually delivered, dried, in tablet form.  These products have a high anthraquinone content, one of the most common of which is aloin. They have laxative properties. Aloe latex  products have been banned by the US Federal Drug Administration for sale as over he counter laxatives.

Aloe extracts from the inner gel can be supplied in liquid form (to drink), topical form (in a lotion), or dried in tablets. Aloe gel is non-toxic and completely safe.

Tablets containing “aloe extract” could be derived from either latex, gel, or a mixture of both. This is not always made clear on the product label

Aloe drink can be called gel, drinking gel, or juice. To add to the confusion juice can sometimes be used to refer to extracts containing outer leaf latex supplied in drinking form.

The inner gel can be processed in a number of different ways. The most basic method is to grind the whole leaf mechanically, and then process the mash (often by carbon filtration) to extract the bitter laxative aloin from the rind. The more labour intensive (and expensive) method is to fillet the leaves to extract only the inner gel and the thin layer of cells just inside the rind which are high in special plant sugars.

Gel preservation methods also vary, and can range from cold processing (sometimes actually a low-heat pasteurisation), to heat sterilisation or the addition of natural or artificial preservatives.

Gel can also be dried and powdered and delivered in capsules of different strengths.

A number polysaccharide sugars are found in the cell layer between the inner gel and outer leaf and some of these, particularly acemannan, have been the subject of considerable research. Extracted acemannan is marketed as an independent product.

Each of these products and processing methods has its supporters and detractors, many of whom insist that these processing methods affect the effectiveness of the final product.


What does it all mean when reading a research paper?

It means that every research paper and article needs to be read carefully, with this information in mind. Even the scientists themselves get confused, typically repeating statements about one extract which does not apply to the other.

For instance:

1. ”Using Aloe”, Nursing magazine, Oct 2002 warns that aloe can cause “spontaneous abortion or premature birth”

This article, written for professional nurses, describes Aloe Vera and includes  information about aloe latex and aloe gel, without differentiating between the two.

The horrifying list of adverse reactions includes “spontaneous abortion or premature birth” but nowhere states that this extract refers to reactions to latex, not gel. Furthermore, this information is given without any reference to verifiable original sources, only to two general handbooks, so the accuracy of even that information cannot be verified. This is the extract:

Adverse reactions: Gastrointestinal: damage to intestinal mucosa, which may be irreversible, painful intestinal spasms, severe hemorrhagic diarrhea Genitourinary: kidney damage, reddish urine (with frequent use) Hematologic: accumulation of blood in pelvic region (with large doses) Metabolic: fluid and electrolyte loss from frequent use, hypokalemia Skin: contact dermatitis, delayed wound healing because of reduced oxygen permeability (topical forms) Other: spontaneous abortion or premature birth (during the third trimester of pregnancy)

Very few people would dare to pick up a bottle of harmless aloe gel after reading such a  description.


2.  A respected scientific journal reports a case of toxic hepatitis due to “aloe ingestion” without identifying what type of aloe is referred to.

In 2005, a report in the World Journal of Gastroenterology (World J Gastroenterol 2005;11(2):303-304) described the worrying case of a German woman who had developed acute hepatitis as a result of taking an Aloe Vera preparation. “To our knowledge”, the report said,  “this is the first case of toxic hepatitis that can be ascribed to an Aloe vera preparation”

But what did the woman actually ingest?  The report did say she had been taking 500mg tablets of “an extract of aloe barbadensis miller”. It did not say whether the  extract was derived from dried gel or the whole leaf. For clarity’s sake, we repeat here what has been said above  - that aloe gel and aloe latex are two totally different products.

Judging from the most commonly sold aloe tablets (here is a typical label) it was most probably a whole leaf extract.

Reading this during a cursory review of scientific reports (a common way for medical and veterinary professionals or nutritionists to make an initial investigation into a substance like aloe vera) would lead the professional to treat aloe vera gel with extreme suspicion.

They would be wrong to do so.