Psoriasis is an auto-immune disease characterized by excessive multiplication of skin cells commonly seen around the elbows and knees and other areas such as the scalp.
The psoriatic skin appears as red patches covered by thick, dry and silvery scales. Psoriasis is an inheritable skin disease and is often accompanied by arthritis. Many psoriasis patients often complain of arthritic pains in the hands and feet.
Aloe Vera
Aloe vera is from the Liliaceae family and is a succulent. The plant can be used fresh using the gel from the leaves or from dehydrated juice from the leaves.
The active constituents in Aloe vera are Aloins, anthraquinones and resin.
For years, Aloe has been used topically for minor burns, sunburn and insect bites. Internally Aloe can be used as a carminitive to reduce intestinal griping. In the last 15 years however there has been strong evidence due to some well conducted studies indicating that Aloe vera is a proven natural cure for psoriasis.
How Does Aloe Help Psoriasis?
It is unclear as to just how Aloe vera helps psoriasis but the clinical evidence is strong.
In a study done in Belgium in 1995 using 60 psoriasis patients, a double blind placebo-controlled study showed that Aloe vera had a cure rate of 83.3% compared to placebo at 6.6%. Patients psoriasis plaques were seen to be reduced in number and there was reduced discoloration. Overall there was a significant reduction in all aspects of the psoriasis.
The Aloe vera used in this study was a 0.5% Aloe vera extract in a hydrophilic cream.
Are There Any Side-Effects When Using Aloe Vera?
There were no drop-outs in the trial group using the Aloe extract due to the fact that there was no side-effects from it's use.
Currently, there are no known undesirable side-effects from using Aloe vera.
Most other medicinal treatments such as corticosteroids are notorious for producing unwanted side-effects. This makes Aloe vera an extremely beneficial and safe natural treatment.
How Do I Use Aloe Vera?
You may use the gel fresh from the plant grown in your garden or purchase aloe vera cream.
The cream or gel must be applied to the affected area 3 times daily for 5 consecutive days at a time and for a minimum of 4 weeks.
Aloe vera is an extremely easy plant to grow yourself and use for at-home treatment. If you are unable to grow this plant, there are many suppliers around the world that provide quality creams and gels.
For more information on Naturopathic treatment of psoriasis, see proven natural medicine.
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