For thousands of years, Aloe Vera has been used to treat everything from burns to cuts. It’s long been considered a vital part of the average person’s medicine cabinet. But, is it useful for helping slow-healing diabetic wounds?

The Research

Admittedly, there isn’t a lot of in-depth human research on using aloe vera for wound healing. However, there are some in vitro and rat studies. These seem to indicate overall that both oral and topical aloe vera doses may help speed wound closure.

One 2011 study, published in The Indonesian Biomedical Journal compared wound healing on non-diabetic Wistar rats and diabetic rats. The diabetic rats were divided up into two groups, one receiving daily oral doses of aloe vera gel and the other not receiving any oral medication.

They were all given small cuts and observed for 14 days. At the end of the observation period, the diabetic rats who received oral aloe vera gel much faster wound-healing compared to those rats who didn’t receive the oral medication. It was also found that the optimum dosage range was 60-120 mg. daily. However, these were rats so that the results might be different in humans and the necessary dosage might also be higher.

Other studies have shown that topical application of aloe gel helps with wound healing of small cuts and burns. It’s not certain whether a positive effect may be had by the topical application of aloe vera on deeper wounds and ulcers. Some of the research shows positive results, while other research indicates that it slows healing.

Taking Aloe Vera

People can and do take aloe vera gel internally, and can find pure gel or juice in most health food stores. It may have additional benefits for you. Research has shown that two tablespoons of the gel daily may help lower blood glucose levels. Just be careful about taking this internally if you are also prone to hypoglycemia or taking insulin.