Aloe Juice Pulp

Our naturopaths help people choose an aloe drink every day, and the first thing we check is which part of the leaf is in the bottle.

A good fit if

• Your tummy is often unsettled and you'd like a daily drink to try
• You're happy to check the label says inner leaf or decolourised
• You'll give it a few weeks, since the gut trials ran for about 4 weeks
• You want aloe as a drink or powder, not a skin gel

Check with us first if

• You're pregnant or breastfeeding. By law, aloe medicines must tell you to get advice from a healthcare professional first.
• You're planning to drink it every day for months. The required label warning says prolonged use may cause serious bowel problems.
• You've had kidney or liver problems. Taking aloe over a long time has been linked to low potassium and kidney failure, and aloe is one of the herbs reported in rare cases of liver injury.
• You take blood pressure medicine. Aloe has been reviewed for possible interactions with these, so it's worth a quick check.
• You've been diagnosed with IBS. The evidence is mixed, so let's talk about what else might suit you.
• You take any prescription medicine. Check with your doctor, pharmacist or our naturopaths before starting.

• Inner-leaf juice or gel drink, decolourised. Best known for: Everyday digestive comfort. The latex layer is removed, so it's low in barbaloin. Absorption: Not measured in any trial we hold. Typical use: A daily serve, as the label directs. This is what our aloe juice range is.
• Whole-leaf juice or extract. Best known for: Not one we'd recommend. The latex stays in, and the carcinogen classification applies to this form. Absorption: Not measured. Typical use: If you want to avoid it, check the label says inner leaf or decolourised.
• Aloe latex or dried juice (aloes). Best known for: The stimulant laxative part of the leaf, and the reason the laxative warnings exist. Absorption: Not measured. Typical use: A laxative medicine, not an everyday drink.
• Standardised aloe syrup. Best known for: The only oral form in our sources with a stated strength: 5.0 mg of polysaccharide per mL. Absorption: Not measured. Typical use: 10 mL a day in one small pilot trial.
• Acemannan or aloe polysaccharide capsules. Best known for: The isolated gel polysaccharide. A trial at 2 or 4 g a day found no change in immune or wellbeing measures. Absorption: Not measured. Typical use: Capsule or powder, as the label directs.

Reference values. There isn't one. Aloe is a plant, not a nutrient, so the NHMRC doesn't set a recommended intake for it.

Typical supplemental range. Aloe juices set their own serve, so follow your label. Most are a daily drink of a few tens of millilitres, and they usually don't state a polysaccharide strength. The one standardised oral form we've found, a syrup with 5.0 mg of polysaccharide per mL, was taken at 10 mL a day in a small pilot trial for reflux symptoms.

Upper level. Australia's permitted ingredients list (Schedule 1, items 480 to 483) sets no maximum daily dose for aloe. The 10 mg hydroxyanthracene figure you may see is the point at which a label statement is required, based on the maximum daily dose. It isn't a limit.

Worth knowing. None of the trials we've found tested an ordinary, unstandardised aloe juice, so there's no trial-backed serve for one. Oral aloe isn't recommended for children under 12. What you need depends on your age, diet and health, so talk to one of our naturopaths.

Food first, where the diet allows it.

• Aloe inner-leaf juice and gel drinks: serve size is set by each product. The gel holds about 3.82 to 6.55 g/kg polysaccharides
• Aloe gel cubes in drinks and desserts: not quantified in any source we hold
• Wholefood blends and powders containing aloe: varies by product, so check the label

If any of these sound like you, talk to one of our naturopaths or your doctor before you start.

• Children under 12. Oral use isn't recommended (TGA CHILD3).
• You have tummy pain, nausea, vomiting or diarrhoea. Don't use it (TGA LAX3).
• You're pregnant or breastfeeding. Get professional advice first (TGA LAX3); aloe is listed among plants of concern in pregnancy.
• You'd use it for a long time. Prolonged use may cause serious bowel problems (TGA LAX2).
• You have kidney problems. Oral aloe has been linked to low potassium (hypokalaemia) and kidney failure.
• You have liver problems. Aloe is among supplements with reported herb-related liver injury, though aloe itself hasn't been confirmed as the cause.
• You take blood pressure medicines. A possible interaction has been reviewed, but we have no aloe-specific mechanism.
• It's a whole-leaf, non-decolourised extract. These are classed as a possible human carcinogen (IARC Group 2B).
• If you take prescription medicines, check with your doctor, pharmacist or our naturopaths before you start.