Aloe vera may not exist in the wild at all
Aloe vera sits on countless windowsills and in shelves of skin gels, yet botanists struggle to find clearly natural populations of it. Some suspect it began as a hybrid. And for all its reputation as a burn remedy, the evidence on whether it actually helps wounds or burns heal is conflicting.
The plant is considered native to the Hajar Mountains of northeastern Oman and the eastern United Arab Emirates, but centuries of cultivation have scattered it across North Africa, the Canary Islands, Madeira, southern Spain and beyond; Chinese and southern European growers first received it during the 17th century. DNA comparisons place its nearest relatives among aloes from Yemen, Socotra, Somalia and Sudan. Because wild stands are so hard to pin down, some researchers think it arose as a hybrid, and in many regions it is now treated as invasive.
Its naming history is tangled too. Carl Linnaeus described it in 1753 as a variety of another aloe. In 1768 Nicolaas Laurens Burman published the name Aloe vera, and Philip Miller, roughly ten days later, called the same plant Aloe barbadensis. The word vera comes from the Latin for true.
Two very different substances come from the leaf. The clear inner gel, rich in a polysaccharide called acemannan, goes into lotions and cosmetics and even some yogurts and drinks. The yellow latex holds aloin, a bitter compound once common in American over-the-counter laxatives. The Food and Drug Administration banned it in 2002 after manufacturers failed to supply the safety data it required.
Swallowing extracts carries real risks: acute stomach pain and cramps, and liver inflammation with long-term use, and it is advised against in pregnancy. On skin, small amounts are probably safe, though the gel is mildly acidic, with a pH around 4.4 to 4.7, and some people react allergically. Gardeners prize its toughness instead: it grows up to a metre tall, tolerates drought, dislikes hard frost and holds the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.
Source: Aloe vera
