How to Make Your Own Aloe Vera Gel

Learn how to make your own aloe vera gel and the steps to harvesting this useful, natural healer.

Aloe vera is just one medicinal herb.

A member of the lily family, the aloe vera plant has been known for its medicinal properties for more then 4,000 years. The succulent-like leaves, often thought to resemble cactus leaves, are filled with a gel that is thick and gelatinous. Only the gel located in the center of a leaf should be used for medicinal purposes.

Each aloe vera leaf consists of four layers:

• The rind is the hard greenish gray outer protective layer of the aloe vera leaf.
• A layer of bitter liquid, called sap, is under the rind and surrounds the gel. The sap protects the plant from being eaten by animals.
• Surrounding the inner gel is mucilage gel, which is known as the inner leaf area. The mucilage gel is removed during the filleting process. For external uses both the inner gel and the mucilage gel can be mixed or blended together.
• The gel in the center part of the leaf is known as the aloe vera, inner gel or gel fillet. This medicinal gel contains the eight essential amino acids that the body needs but cannot make. If you are taking aloe gel internally, only use the inner gel, being sure to carefully remove any mucilage gel and sap.

Many people use an aloe plant to treat a burn or cut by simply cutting a piece of the leaf off and squeezing or rubbing the liquid onto their skin. Although this method is effective, it wastes most of the valuable inner gel of the leaf.

To properly remove the inner gel of an aloe vera leaf, the leaf needs to be filleted instead of simply squeezed. This process also harvests much more aloe gel from the leaf.

1. When you are ready to harvest the gel from an aloe leaf, choose an outer leaf that is healthy and grows toward the bottom of the plant. To remove the leaf, cut it at an angle close to the plant’s base. Plants that are too immature to harvest will not have leaves growing close to the ground.
2. Once you have cut the leaf from the plant, place it upright in a container in a slightly tilted position. Let the leaf stay in that position for approximately 10 to 12 minutes allowing the sap to drain from the leaf.
3. Place the aloe leaf on a flat surface such as a cutting board. Carefully cut off the tip of the leaf and the pointed rough edges on both sides using a very sharp knife. Make certain to cut both sides of the leaf all the way from top to bottom.
4. Separate the front and back of the leaf by slicing it lengthwise from the inside.
5. Scoop out both the slimy mucilage gel and the clear inner gel which appears more as a solid gel. For most leaves, a spoon works for scooping out the gel. If the leaf is very large, a butter knife may work best. When removing the gel, it is important to press down lightly but firmly, being careful not to remove any remaining sap.

Store the aloe gel in the refrigerator in a plastic container that is safe for food storage or a glass container. The best container choice is a dark green or brown glass jar, which helps to keep out light. Many people add a drop of vitamin E and a small amount of citric acid powder to their aloe gel to prevent discoloration and make the gel last longer. In place of citric acid powder, simply crush a vitamin C tablet into powder or use a drop of grapefruit seed extract.

Knowing how to make your own aloe vera gel and the correct method of preparing and storing it provides you with a supply of the healing gel that lasts under refrigeration for a year or longer.

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