The Magic of the Aloe Vera Plant for Treatment of Minor Burns

The Aloe Vera has been used for centuries, dating back to the Egyptians. The Aloe Vera has been used for healing. It is truly an amazing plant. I always have one. Following are my first hand experiences with burns and the effect of using Aloe Vera to prevent blisters and scars. This plant is easy to find and economical to purchase; no home should be without one.

I believe every household should own a few Aloe Vera plants. Not only can they be lovely (that is mine pictured), but the Aloe Vera is my choice for treating contact burns. I have avoided many blisters with the help of this interesting plant.

The Aloe Vera is a beneficial plant and one of the best first aid remedies ever for the first response to contact burns. If a burn is so severe the skin is broken, a trip to emergency is required for professional advice and treatment from a doctor!

I am including first hand accounts of the benefits of Aloe Vera... after the precautions.

PRECAUTIONS:

Note: Severe burns always require medical attention. Always err on the side of caution and seek professional help when treating burns!

The gel from the Aloe Vera leaf is a complex mix of active ingredients that are still being studied.



• ONLY the Aloe Vera plant should be used, there are many Aloes, some said to be toxic! The chemical composition for each type of aloe is different!
• Some sensitive individuals are allergic to Aloe Vera.
• Use only on unbroken skin as a topical treatment and NEVER use internally!
• Various clinical studies are disagree on the benefits of Aloe Vera on burns. These are my own first person accounts of incidents.

I have experienced excellent results using the juice of the leaf of the Aloe Vera (pictured) whenever I experienced such burns, as from from irons, oven doors and anything that I had accidentally touched and burned myself with. My late husband was skeptical and thought I had fallen prey to some old wives tales. Not so.

My husband had a very unfortunate accident one morning while he was deep frying some batter. He was barefoot in the kitchen; flipped the batter he was frying, as a result splashing some of the sizzling fat on his bare toes! The reddening was instantaneous. We rushed to the bathroom to cool the wound with cold water. The wound was red and angry and sure to blister painfully…a huge problem with wearing shoes!

Did I mention my husband was diabetic? This is a serious injury for one with his condition. I had visions of his recovery being long with infection certainly setting in. I was very concerned for him.

I wondered if we should just rush to emergency, but we both reasoned, there was little they would do…the damage was done and the skin was still intact. It was going to blister! I reasoned the Aloe Vera would at least give him some relief from the scalding pain until we decided the best course of action.

First, we finished cooling down the burn with cool water, I asked him if I could try the Aloe Vera juice from the plant to give him some relief, promising to be gentle. He was wary and told me if it stung, he didn’t want it. I couldn’t guarantee the effect, but promised to stop if it felt it was aggravating his injury.

I sliced open a thick juicy stem and laid it, gently, juicy side down, on his red toes. There was a momentary gasp and I uttered a small prayer under my breath. I prayed, that if this worked, I would forever believe in the power of Aloe Vera for burns.

I actually didn’t think it would have any impact on such a burn. There would be painful blisters that needed attention for certain. Sizzling hot grease on skin is not pretty

I looked up and asked him if he wanted the Aloe Vera removed and though he was grimacing, he stated it was helping. At that moment, I had a faint glimmer of hope. I gently moved the juicy flesh to cover the entire reddened area and cut more fresh aloe as the pulp juices were absorbed into his skin.(the juice soaks into the burned area like a sponge) We sat there for awhile, me ministering to his foot, adding more Aloe Vera juice as it dried up. His skin seemed to soak it up. Finally, he seemed to get enough relief and we stopped and left the foot uncovered to observe what would develop.

I asked if we still should go to emergency anyway, but he told me to hold off since the pain seemed to have stopped. I was incredulous. Before long even the reddening paled and by evening it looked like he had never even experienced a burn. That made him a believer. He wore his shoes the next day with no irritation.

I have also had an intense burn, that "should have" blistered severely.

I accidentally lifted a hot cast iron pan with my bare hands one day when I wasn't paying attention.

I had lifted the offending frypan about six inches off the surface of the stove before instinct kicked in and I dropped it with a clatter. I immediately ran to the sink to cool my burned hand off with cold water (it stops further damage).

I reached for Aloe Vera once again. My palm had an instant red imprint from the pan handle. The imprint spanned my palm. The burn was on my right hand and I wondered how I could go to work with a blistered palm.

I immediately applied Aloe Vera juice and wondered what would happen. I felt skeptical of the results, since pressing flesh to hot cast iron is like branding!

Well. I am happy to report, not only was I able to go to work the next day, but I didn't have a blister; not one! I had some tenderness, but nothing I couldn't handle.

So get yourself an Aloe Vera plant, if you are prone to minor burns. Even if you are not prone to burns, accidents happen.

What always works for me is cold water to cool the burn and juice of the Aloe Vera gently laid on an unbroken skin. It prevents a painful blister and the subsequent scarring from ever happening. I forgot to mention that . The Aloe Vera helps prevent scarring, I have no marks to show I have ever picked up a hot cast-iron frypan with my bare hands!

• Now in the case of a potentially bad burn like my husband’s , I would recommend everyone to take a trip to emergency clinic right away!
• Any chemical burns are very serious and always require medical help! Chemical burns must be washed for a very, long time to remove all traces of chemicals. Therefore a doctor must always be consulted.
• This Hub is not meant to replace any professional advice!
• I know of one person with diabetes that is allergic to Aloe Vera…so this is something you should test before you ever have a burn or simply ask the person.
• There are many products out there with Aloe Vera in their formulations and people usually know if they can tolerate Alow Vera.
• However, for all the rest of us, an Aloe Vera is not only a beautiful plant, but also an indispensable first-aid plant!

"This study suggests further trials might prove Aloe Vera "might be beneficial on burn wounds". http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7561562

Here is a study done on rats with induced burns: http://ukpmc.ac.uk/abstract/MED/10808702

This abstract cites that Aloe Vera extract is beneficial for healing burn wounds: http://journals.lww.com/burncareresearch/Abstract/1982/05000/Myth,_Magic,_Witchcraft,_or_Fact__Aloe_vera.5.aspx

I live in North America and my Aloe Vera is thriving and growing new babies at the moment. The big plant has produced 8 new plants which are in various stages of growth. I find the plant requires the sunniest window and at the very least a windowsill to prosper. It only needs watering sparingly no matter what the season is... but it can not be totally ignored.

The large plant probably would be the best to use for burns, but it is quite gorgeous right now, so i would tend to use the largest of the smaller plants pictured below. i have included pictures of all the offspring to show how prolific the plant is!