The Amazing Aloe

Oh Summer, how I love thee! The heat, the sweat, the fun, the fresh vine ripened food, the days at the beach and the beautiful warm glowing sunsets.

Summer brings with it many things to be grateful for, yet for some people summer may not be their favorite season. The fire element is very strong and present in summer and we have been experiencing its heat here in the Northeast. For people that have a lot of fire in their constitution, summer can be the time when they experience more imbalances and discomfort as opposed to the cool and cold days of fall and winter. But don’t worry, nature has your back!

We are given gifts at each season, things that are designed to bring our bodies back into alignment and ride the seasonal changes with ease. So it’s time to listen to the cues! By using opposites to balance, we turn to cooling foods and activities during the hot summer days. This is where the super summer food, aloe, comes into play.

Aloe is widely used for sunburns. Its cooling properties are well known to help soothe and heal the skin on the outside of our bodies. But did you know that aloe is also amazing at healing and soothing the skin on the inside of our bodies, too?!! Well, you do now!

Aloe when taken internally, either in the whole food form, juiced, or freeze dried, etc. is really amazing at loving on our intestinal skin. Our intestinal tract is lined with a mucous membrane. When the lining is too dry, constipation, bloating, and gas result. If these conditions do not improve, the body produces excess reactive mucous to make up for the dry conditions. This leads to loose stools or mucous in the stool and creates a cascading effect. Now the microvilli and villi are susceptible to damage. These are the mucosal finger-like projections that line the small intestine and are responsible for the absorption of nutrients.

OY!

It’s ok though, our bodies want to heal under the right conditions. Aloe is not only cooling when there is excess heat which can cause excess dryness to our system, but it is also mucilaginous in nature. By helping to reline the mucosal tract, it helps to bring conditions that aid in repair of the villi and microvilli over time, as well as providing relief to things like acid reflux and sour stomach. There are soooooo many things that nature offers us to help keep our bodies healthy and aloe is just one of them. So keep some aloe handy, not only for your sunburns but for your digestive health as well!

Please reach out if you would like to learn more about your unique health situation, I’d be happy to help. Also check out my newsletter for some aloe recipes.

All my best,

Candice