There are nearly 200 species of this member of the Lily family, found in African deserts and the islands of Aruba and Barbados as well as propagating in many other locations that are warmer throughout the year – such as Texas and Costa Rican. Aloe Barbadensis is the specific type of Aloe Vera that is used for its healing properties of the 200 different species around the world. Since ancient times Aloe Vera has been used to treat burns and other skin conditions such as scrapes, sunburns and insect bites. Aloe is a common ingredient in cosmetics and lotions because it naturally balances the pH of the skin – which is due to its bolstering and balancing effect on the immune system. Internally, it has been used as a mild laxative and studies are being done on the use of aloe to enhance the immune system.

Aloe Vera (Aloe Barbadensis) contains hundreds of different ingredients, with the predominant ones being first water and second mineral salts. Most companies that process Aloe Vera for topical use in cosmetic formulas as well as in making natural supplements as a juice or freeze dried powder – most of the time using the whole leaf. However, all the research that has been done concerning the active ingredients in Aloe Vera have indicated that very little benefit comes from this whole leaf form of Aloe Vera, which is because the active ingredients do not remain stable in the whole leaf form. In fact, only the freeze dried forms of Aloe Vera gel that are minus the leaf have been found effective in terms of bolstering and balancing immune system response – with the Food and Drug Administration approving some forms of freeze dried Aloe Vera gel minus the leaf for the treatment of specific types of skin disease.

The leaf contains a thick gel-like liquid. The gel can be stripped from the leaf in order to eliminate the leaf which has a concentrated amount of mineral salts and enzymes in it. The active ingredient in Aloe Vera that supports healthy immune system function is a Mucilaginous Poly Saccharide Molecule (MPS), which is more specifically a long chain mannose galactose molecule. Dr. David Wheeler’s MPS-GOLD 100 has been evaluated with a chemical assay, with the results demonstrating that the original molecule from the Aloe Vera plant remains intact. Click Here to view the molecular weight chart to read the Dalton breakdown of MPS-GOLD.