Herbal Sun Soother: Aloe Vera

Reader Contribution by Stephanie Nelson
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<p>Growing up in Hawaii, I would camp on the shore, hike around volcanoes, relax at the beach, swim in waterfalls, kayak and bike down beautiful trails. (It was a rough life, but someone had to do it!)<br />
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Unfortunately, despite my previous experiences, I always seemed to return home with a pink glowing aura around my burnt body. The Hawaiian summer sun is relentless! Before I could even step out of the car, my mom would fill my ears with her endless speech on the benefits of using more sunscreen. She said I didn’t use enough sunscreen to start out with and that I had neglected to reapply. Nonetheless, the damage was done.</p>
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<p>Once I got home the “ritualistic process” would begin: My mom would start a cool shower for her burnt, crispy daughter and then I would douse myself in <a title=”aloe vera” href=”https://www.motherearthliving.com/gardening/ancient-herbs-modern-uses-aloe.aspx”>aloe vera</a>.<br />
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<a title=”Aloe” href=”http://www.burtsbees.com/natural-products/sun-outdoor-sun-care/aloe-linden-flower-after-sun-soother.html”>Aloe</a> was my number one remedy as it would soothe my skin and cease the burning sensation. What more could you ask for when you feel like you’ve been deep-fried? The miracle plant also relieves thermal burned skin and it stimulates wounds to heal quicker.<br />
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There are a plethora of aloe plants throughout Hawaii and extracting the gel is as easy as snapping off a leaf. The <a title=”aloe leaf ” href=”https://www.motherearthliving.com/plant-profile/aloe-vera.aspx”>aloe leaf</a> is like a hallow tube and clear gel occupies the space. If you extract aloe for skin related purposes, make sure the gel is clear and not yellow. The yellow juice is found in the resin canal cells of the plant and acts as a laxative.<br />
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Even though I currently live in Denver, I still do many of the same activities I did in Hawaii. With the high elevation and the summer sun, I still manage to get burned (regardless of the amount of sunscreen I use). Fortunately, a bottle of aloe vera is always close by. </p>

  • Published on Jul 14, 2009
Tagged with: Reader Contributions
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