Supplement Detective

Summary: Aloe vera acne products are only moderately effective.  However, using the liquid from inside an aloe vera leaf has given good results in my experience.  You’ll want to make sure there are no allergies by testing on a small area first.  Aloe vera is believed to act by effecting your immune system which can help scarring as well as breakouts.

Q: My daughter has moderate acne and has tried quite a few of over the counter acne gels and creams.  But she hasn’t had real good results.  She’s been looking online and said people seem to have good results using aloe vera for acne.  As a pharmacist what have you heard about this – good or bad?  Is it worth the money.

A: One of the hardest things about acne is understanding what is causing it because it can be any number of things: hormonal, stress, poor hygiene, genetics and (one of the biggest culprits in my opinion) poor diet.  With that being said, the best way to attack acne isn’t with any cream or natural treatment – you have to do your best to help your daughter eliminate what is the root cause.

Assuming you have done that let’s look at some of the options you have with aloe vera and acne.

How Aloe Vera Works

While it isn’t totally agreed upon by the medical community at this point – it appears that aloe vera has immunomodulatory properties.  Basically, what this means is that is can modulate, or effect, your immune system.

When you apply it topically (on your skin) it has the ability to effect wound healing as well as inflammation.  This explains why aloe vera may not only help breakouts but also help improve the appearance and healing of acne scars.

Aloe Vera Gels for Acne

There are a number of commercial gels and creams that are sold over the counter in America for acne treatment.

Let me say this, as a pharmacist the feedback I’ve gotten on these types of products has been mixed at best.  For some they work and for some they seem to make the acne worse.

Why this happens I’m not exactly sure but I can tell you this.  Any time a product is prepared commercially there are excipients (a fancy pharmaceutical word for compounds that help the product ‘keep’ longer or allow the main ingredient to mix better, etc.).  Often times a person’s skin can be very sensitive to these extra ingredients.

Also, you could probably take a dozen of these aloe vera acne gels and send them to a lab and get different concentrations of actual aloe vera in the product.  Of course, I haven’t done this and I cannot prove it but it’s not odd to see concentrations vary in over the counter products.

Aloe Vera Plant

This doesn’t mean aloe vera can’t help.  The best results I’ve heard about personally have come from patients who have the actual aloe vera plant at home and use it naturally.

The process isn’t complicated – but it has been reported to me that it is a bit messy.  Simply take a small amount of the aloe vera leaf and start applying the ‘gel’ from inside the leaf directly to the face.  Your daughter will want to do this at night and then gently wash off in the morning (for obvious reasons).

Here’s a slight caution: while I’ve never personally heard of an allergy to aloe vera – it is possible.  So, before she slathers it over her whole face have her just apply to a small area on her skin (even on her arm or a non-visible area) and see how she responds.  Again, it’s highly unlikely she’ll have any problems but it’s always better to be safe than sorry.

Another quick tip: when your daughter washes her face in the morning what types of cleansers is she using?  Often times harsh cleansers can make the acne worse.  Have her use a very mild soap.  Or, two other natural alternatives like baking soda or even lemon juice (which I’ve had good feedback on).