Aloe Vera: The Ultimate Guide

Aloe vera gel helps with minor injuries such as abrasions or sunburn. What you should look for when buying and how you can recognize a good product, we tell you here.

Aloe vera gel has been considered a miracle cure in the beauty and natural cosmetics industry for years. Especially the pain-relieving effect on minor burns, abrasions or irritated skin is undisputed to date. You can extract it yourself or buy it as a ready-made gel. But where does aloe vera gel come from and which product on the beauty shelf delivers what it promises? We reveal it to you.

Aloe vera gel: What effect does the supposed miracle weapon have?

Originally, the aloe vera – also called desert lily – comes from the Arabian region. Nowadays, however, it is cultivated in many places. An aloe vera plant consists of two components: the roots and the foliage. The latter, roughly speaking, is composed of the somewhat firmer bark, a leaf sap (found just below the bark), and the gel – the leaf pulp – inside the leaves. While the leaf juice can sometimes cause negative skin reactions and is even suspected of being carcinogenic, the aloe vera gel in its pure form promises true miracles. Processed in cosmetic products, the gel – depending on the concentration – is also very helpful.

Aloe vera is good for…

• slight skin irritation
• dry skin
• abrasions
• sunburn
• mosquito bites
• red spots after shaving or epilation

Controversial (and scientifically not yet sufficiently proven), however, are assumptions that aloe vera gel can also help with more serious diseases such as cancer.

Aloe vera gel: As good as its reputation?

Aloe vera gel consists mostly of water, followed by sugar, amino acid, fat, minerals and vitamins. In total, aloe vera has more than 200 active ingredients. However, it is not always certain whether the full active power of the plant is contained in a cosmetic aloe vera gel. Not even when a company advertises 100 percent aloe vera. As Öko Test proved in a study in 2020, the ingredients of an aloe vera plant – and thus the gel obtained – are subject to strong fluctuations. Thus, the content of an aloe vera varies depending on the cultivation (irrigation, fertilization, climate).

What is beyond question, apart from the concentration of ingredients, is the moisturizing effect of the leaf pulp of an aloe vera gel. Products that moisturize are essential in the treatment of the skin irritations just mentioned. Moisturization is especially important for the regeneration of the skin in the case of minor skin irritations such as sunburn or abrasions.

What does the aloe vera content reveal?

When it comes to cosmetic products, we are often mistaken about the fact that the proportion of an ingredient says something about the quality of the product. A particularly high aloe vera content appears to us to be a good quality feature. Unfortunately, this is not the case in this case. Unfortunately, a high aloe vera content does not say anything about the density of active ingredients in an aloe vera gel.

A positive example with a supposedly low aloe vera content is the aloe vera gel from Santaverde. This gel contains “only” 90 percent aloe vera. However, there is a good reason for this: the natural cosmetics company – unlike numerous other manufacturers of aloe vera gel – does not use a concentrated powder but the juice from the aloe vera plant. Since this is naturally more perishable than a powder, the company has to use a preservative.

So far there are no sufficiently scientifically proven statements as to whether a not-from-concentrate juice is richer in active ingredients. However, the assumption is supported by many producers, since important ingredients could be lost when processing into powder. The conclusion would be that an aloe vera gel with not-from-concentrate juice contains less aloe vera. However, this is still richer than the powder, which may have lost active ingredients during the processing.

A definite statement on the question “Which is better – leaf juice / direct juice or powder concentrate?” cannot yet be made from a scientific point of view. However, there is a tendency towards leaf juice.

What does a good aloe vera gel contain?

Since we know that the indication of the aloe vera dosage is not yet a sufficient statement about the quality and effectiveness of an aloe vera gel, we have to look more closely at the other ingredients. In doing so, we should rather focus on the question of what should not be in an aloe vera gel. Even a quick look at the ingredients will give you a good first impression. The fewer ingredients the gel you choose has, the better.

Since an aloe vera gel cannot do without a preservative, it must necessarily have another ingredient besides the aloe vera direct juice or concentrated aloe vera powder. Everything else is actually superfluous. Therefore, the list should not be too long. Otherwise there is a risk that additional ingredients such as fragrances or microplastics, and in the worst case formaldehyde (or formaldehyde releasers) have been used.

Which aloe vera gel is the best?

While aspects such as color or coverage are important for lipsticks and the like, care products have to score with their ingredients alone. This requires a detailed examination of the desired product. The test results from Öko Test or Stiftung Warentest are always a good indicator. For example, Öko Test has awarded the aforementioned aloe vera gel from Santaverde with the rating “very good”. Unlike many other gels, the natural cosmetics manufacturer uses the juice from the aloe vera, i.e. the immediate leaf pulp. The company also grows the plant itself on its own plantations in Andalusia.

Another positive example is the aloe vera gel from Seven Minerals. In addition to a test result from Öko Test with the grade “very good”, the look at the ingredients speaks in favor of the product. In addition to direct leaf juice from organic aloe vera, there are only four other ingredients in the gel: a natural thickener, citric acid for the pH value, ascorbic acid and potassium sorbate to prevent the formation of mold.

Tip: If you often ask yourself “What’s in my cosmetic products and / or food?”, You can also download a suitable app. With the “CodeCheck” app, for example, you can simply scan the barcode of your products and receive important information about the ingredients.

Aloe vera gel: Application

Aloe vera products are available in numerous versions: For application on the skin, for drinking, in pill form, etc. It is important that you always follow the instructions on the packaging. Aloe vera gel is generally only suitable for external use. Otherwise, there is not much to consider.

• Always apply aloe vera gel on cleansed skin.
• The frequency of application is based on the texture and need of your skin.
• We recommend that you use the aloe vera gel twice a day and let it absorb well.
• If you want to use it to treat abrasions or sunburn, you can also use the aloe vera gel more often.

Aloe vera gel: Do it yourself or buy it?

There is no universal answer to the DIY question. Unlike many other products, however, the industrially produced gel has a decisive advantage: the aloin, which is found between the leaf skin and the leaf pulp and is suspected of being carcinogenic, is extracted during processing by the cosmetics industry. Although you can do the same yourself by very precise and careful processing, it requires some practice and there is no 100% certainty. If you want to be on the safe side, we recommend in this case to resort to a finished product.