Aloe Benefits for the Aging Skin

Aloe Vera - it’s been known as the world’s potted physician”.. For centuries, aloe and aloe products have been widely used for their amazing healing properties, particularly for burns, sunburns and many skin irritations. But just about a few decades ago, holistic beauty specialists began using aloe for aesthetic treatments because of its unique ability to stimulate skin cell renewal. And until recently, users and specialists have simply relied on results as no one knew exactly how it worked.

With the growing inclination to choose natural-based products over chemically derived preparations for medicinal and treatment purposes, scientific studies have been conducted to find out even more about the cell proliferating properties of aloe vera. Dr. Ivan E. Danhof, M.D.-Ph.D., president of the North Texas Research Laboratories, has led various studies on the various benefits of aloe on skin care and skin treatments. Danhof, more popularly known as the “Father of Aloe”, is recognized as one of the world’s foremost experts on medically active herbal molecules, and in particular the functional components of the aloe plant.

Danhof discovered that the interior gel from the aloe vera plant was found to enhance the production of human fibroblast cells sixty to eighty percent faster than normal cell production. Fibroblast cells are responsible for creating collagen which is the supporting protein of the skin. The cells are located on the dermis of the skin and through the normal aging process or during sun exposure, fibroblasts slow down their collagen production. As aging progresses, collagen quality is inevitably diminished and wrinkles become more prominent. Danhof discovered that apart from improving fibroblast cell integrity, aloe gel also accelerated collagen production.

So what is it in aloe that enables this ability to influence fibroblast cells and collagen production? No definite answer has been arrived at as of yet, but sugar-like substances called polysaccharides are known to have some positive effects on the aging process. Polysaccharides have the great ability to hold and bind moisture and may reorganize epidermal cells on the upper layer of the stratum comeum, which is the skin’s protective surface barrier. Cells in this top layer of the skin loosen as we age, so water escapes more easily. Skin cells don’t mature properly and as a result, bacteria and other harmful elements gain entry to the inner layers. These result in dry, scaly and sometimes itchy skin that usually comes with aging. By tightening the epidermal cells, the protective barrier is restored and the complexion becomes younger-looking.

Danhof also found proof that aloe gel’s ability to penetrate was four times faster than that of water in a separate study. This was quite an interesting fact since water is actually lighter and aloe gel is 99.5 percent water. Yet a mere half percent of another component serves as a super penetrator, taking the moisture in aloe deeper into the underlying skin layers which water cannot penetrate.

The skin is the largest organ of the body. It is also our primary defense against harmful elements and irritants in our environment. It definitely deserves the best protection and reinforcement.

Traditionally used as a natural remedy to address skin problems, aloe is our best defense against skin conditions associated with aging. Uniquely designed and formulated products containing aloe work to protect, moisturize and provide the essential nutrients and vitamins needed by our skin. Check out some of these products at: http://aloeandyou.co.uk/beauty-skincare