1. Aloe Vera, the King of Aloe Vera
Aloe vera plants are relatively tall, typically reaching 60 to 70 centimeters in height, and they continually produce side shoots. They are a very easy-to-grow succulent plant, requiring minimal water. They can thrive in any location indoors and grow rapidly outdoors in sunny conditions.
Aloe vera can produce flowers with proper care. Its flower stalks grow quite tall, making them less attractive for viewing. The flowers are clusters of small orange-yellow blossoms, which bloom in winter and spring. When fully open, the flowers resemble small bells, which is quite attractive.
2. Benefits and Uses of Aloe Vera Gel
It’s true, and its gel is incredibly effective.
3. Aloe Vera vs. Chinese Aloe
The difference between Dannong Aloe and Aloe Vera is that Aloe Vera has a very high medicinal value. It’s widely used in medicine, cosmetics, and health supplements.
4. Aloe Vera
Most aloe vera plants grow very slowly, but there’s a species called Aloe Vera that grows much faster. It’s not only fast-growing, but also a great beauty product. Generally speaking, a newly planted aloe plant, under suitable conditions and with proper care, can grow 20-30 cm per year.
Aloe Vera Growth Rate
Most aloe vera grows very slowly. There is a type of aloe vera that grows faster than any other in the aloe family. It not only grows faster, but is also a great beauty product.
5. Aloe Vera Skin Infusion
Aloe vera that can be used for skin infusion is called aloe vera, and it can grow very tall.
6. Aloe Vera Polysaccharide Content
Aloe vera has both cosmetic and medicinal effects.
In terms of beauty, because it contains aloe polysaccharides and vitamins, it has a good nourishing, moisturizing and whitening effect on human skin, and is less irritating. It is comfortable to use and can improve rough skin and facial wrinkles. It also has certain sun protection and anti-aging properties, primarily due to the mucilage in aloe vera.
7. Is Aloe Barbadensis Aloe Vera the Same as Aloe Vera?
Aloe Barbadensis is a species of aloe specifically used to make aloe vera gel and is a plant. Aloe Barbadensis is a processed product that simply contains the ingredients of the former.
8. Benefits of Aloe Vera
Aloe Barbadensis:
The renowned Aloe Barbadensis, with its high medicinal value, can be eaten and used for beauty treatments. It generally lacks spots, distinguishing it from Chinese Aloe Vera, and has a shorter plant, distinguishing it from arborescent Aloe Vera. Young Aloe Barbadensis seedlings may have spots, which gradually disappear as they mature.
Arborescent Aloe Vera:
Arborescent Aloe Vera, also known as Japanese Aloe, Wood Aloe, Upright Aloe, or Woody Aloe, is distinguished by its tall, long stems and lack of spots. It has extremely high medicinal value, but only moderate cosmetic benefits. It is edible, but its taste is extremely bitter, so it’s best not to overeat. The rhizome is slightly toxic. Aloe vera, also known as Chinese aloe, dragon horn, or shallot, has shorter stems and a shorter plant. The white markings on its leaves distinguish it from aloe vera. It is edible, but its bitterness isn’t as strong as other varieties, resulting in a better taste. However, its medicinal value is not as high as that of arborescent aloe and aloe vera. Its cosmetic benefits are stronger than those of arborescent aloe, but on par with those of aloe vera. It’s primarily cultivated for cosmetic purposes. The one in the middle is indeed a saponin aloe, which changes color easily. It stays very green in the shade, but turns dark green or purple in the sun. Its most noticeable features are its markings and thorns. Soapwort Aloe: Soapwort Aloe is distinguished by its large, ornately patterned leaves. It is highly ornamental, slightly toxic, and generally not recommended for consumption. However, it has almost no bitterness. Its alkaline sap can also be used to treat conditions such as hyperacidity and peptic ulcers. Its cosmetic properties are modest, and it is primarily used for ornamental purposes. Evernight Aloe: Evernight Aloe, the most common ornamental aloe, has broad, short, dense leaves with distinct serrations. It has little medicinal value and few cosmetic benefits. It is slightly toxic and not recommended for consumption or topical use, and is generally used solely for ornamental purposes. Cape Aloe: Cape Aloe is generally similar to arborescent aloe, but its leaves are wider and shorter, with sharper serrations, and the plant is shorter. Its color is darker than other aloe vera varieties. It has high medicinal value, but it is not recommended for raw consumption. It is usually dried and used as a granule for medicinal purposes. It is not recommended for topical use. To add, Cape Aloe and City of Life are quite similar. The main way to distinguish them is by looking for side branches, which Cape Aloe definitely has none. Also, City of Life aloe vera is shorter, while Cape Aloe vera is generally taller, with large ones reaching 5-6 meters.
9. Aloe Vera Gel from Curaçao
First, the outer packaging: The transparent ones are imitations, made of thinner material, while the darker ones are the genuine ones, made of thicker material. While they look and feel similar from the outside, there’s a difference in the light transmittance inside. Second, the font: The font on real aloe vera gel is a dark, dark green, and the text is relatively bold, while the fake ones are lighter green and thinner. Third, the lid: Look at the red arrow on the lid. The imitation ones are made of very poor quality, and the lid is transparent. The genuine ones are much better, with the center section being almost opaque. Fourth, the gel quality. Actually, the appearance isn’t important; the most important thing is the gel quality. It should come out like toothpaste, with a jelly-like texture. Imitation gels don’t have this effect; they spread easily with a thin, thin smear. Fifth, the smell. Authentic gel has a light fragrance, while fake ones have a stronger one. However, this also varies from person to person, as everyone’s sense of smell is different, so the intensity of the flavor can also vary!
10. Aloin Content in Aloe Barbadensis
[Properties Identification]
Old Aloe
has an irregular shape, often breaking into polygonal shapes of varying sizes. Its surface is dark reddish-brown or dark brown, and it has a dull, light, hard texture. It has a rough or pockmarked cross-section, is highly hygroscopic, has a distinctive odor, and tastes extremely bitter.
New Aloe
has a glossy, brownish-brown surface with a slight green tint. It is light, loose, and brittle. Its cross-section is glassy and layered, with an unpleasant odor and an extremely bitter taste. Preferred are dark green, crisp, shiny, and have a strong odor. [Microscopic Identification] Observed using lactic acid phenol slides, old aloe vera is lumpy with small, needle-like crystals clustered together on the surface. New aloe vera is brown, polygonal, and lumpy, lacking crystals. [Composition] Old aloe vera contains approximately 25% total aloe glycosides, primarily barbaloin. In addition, small amounts of isobarbaloin, aloeemodin, and aloe resin are present. New aloe vera contains approximately 9% aloin, as well as other components such as aloe resin, while isobarbaloin is present in very low or no amounts. The moisture content of this product must not exceed 12.0%, and the total ash content must not exceed 4.0%.
[Physical and Chemical Identification]
① Take 0.5g of this product powder, add 50ml of water, shake, and filter. Take 5ml of the filtrate, add 0.2g of borax, heat to dissolve, take a few drops of the solution, add 30ml of water, shake well, and it will show green fluorescence. Observe under ultraviolet light (365nm), it will show bright yellow fluorescence. Take another 2ml of the filtrate, add 2ml of nitric acid, shake well, old aloe vera will show brown-red, new aloe vera will show yellow-green. Take another 2ml of the filtrate, add an equal amount of saturated bromine water, and a yellow precipitate will form.
② Take 0.1g of this product powder, add 5ml of ferric chloride test solution and 5ml of dilute hydrochloric acid, shake, heat in a water bath for 5 minutes, cool, add 10ml of carbon tetrachloride, shake gently for 1 minute, separate 6ml of the carbon tetrachloride layer, add 3ml of ammonia test solution, shake, and the ammonia layer will show rose red to cherry red. ③ Take 0.5g of this product powder and add 20ml of methanol. Heat to a boil in a water bath, shake for several minutes, and filter. Collect the filtrate as the test solution. Separately, prepare a solution containing 5mg of aloin reference substance in methanol to serve as the reference solution. For thin-layer chromatography, spot 5μl of each solution on a silica gel G thin-layer plate using ethyl acetate-methanol-water (100:17:13) as the developing solvent. Develop, remove, air-dry, spray with 10% potassium hydroxide in methanol, and examine under ultraviolet light (365nm). A fluorescent spot of the same color will appear in the chromatogram of the test substance at the corresponding position in the chromatogram of the reference substance. This product contains anhydrous aloin (C20H20O8) calculated on a dry basis. The content of Aloe vera barbadensis shall not be less than 28.0%; the content of Aloe vera barbadensis shall not be less than 18.0%.