The Many Uses of Aloe Vera
When I was a kid, my mom gave my sister and I aloe vera gel freshly sourced from a small potted plant on top of our refrigerator to treat stomach aches. Our family used fresh aloe for treating internal ailments, but I knew that people also used it for a variety of topical purposes like treating sunburn and moisturizing the skin.
I did not, however, know that aloe vera gel makes a pretty amazing hair mask! After seeing video after video of people promoting the moisturizing, curl-popping and hair-growing benefits of aloe on my TikTok For You page, I knew I had to give it a try.
Many amazing benefits have been attributed to aloe, but there have not been many scientific studies performed to substantiate anecdotal claims. Based off of my positive experience with the aloe hair mask and the positive experiences reported by others, I definitely think it is something worth looking into for yourself.
Making My Aloe Vera Hair Mask
I am always on the lookout for great natural hair products. Also, in general, I like to keep anything I am ingesting or applying to be as clean as possible. I loved knowing that this DIY mask was derived completely from the plant without any synthetic additives.
I followed the steps as set out by TikToker @gabbygoops. Check out her video below:
Directions
I’m not going to lie, the process for making the hair treatment was a bit messy. I sliced the long piece of aloe vera into chunks approximately 1-2 inches wide. I then sliced open the chunks and scooped out the gelatinous center.
I plopped the chunks of aloe in to my trusty Vitamix and blended them into a liquid. Now came the messiest part: I strained the pulpy, slimy liquid through a cheese cloth. Its an essential step to avoid having chunks of aloe in your hair, but its a very slippery, slimy process.
Once you have the liquid, you are done! I spread the pulp onto my décolletage for an improptu skin mask to avoid waste, and wiped the excess bits off with a damp cloth.
You can put the aloe gel directly onto dry hair like I did, though I suspect it probably works better if your hair is a bit damp first.
As you can see below, it worked quite well! I am not used to seeing this level of curl definition:
Before… …After!
We’ll have to wait a bit for me to report back on any hair growth claims, but I am very happy with the moisturizing and curl-defining aspects of the aloe gel.
The gel keeps in the refrigerator for a few days if you don’t have time to use it immediately. I was able to treat my entire head using 3/4 of a large piece of aloe, though this will obviously vary depending on how much hair you have and how large the aloe piece is.
Do you know of any other great uses for aloe? Or are planning on using this treatment yourself? Drop a comment below!
