The Importance of Aloe

I was first introduced to Aloe 53 years ago when I worked in Daytona Beach Florida in the summer of 1972.  

Somehow, I talked my parents into letting me go to Daytona even though I was only 16 years old. They must have trusted me or were glad to get rid of me. At any rate, a friend of mine and I fixed up an old Chevy and took off for the beach. To put this in context, I had never been south of Charleston, West Virginia (my home state) and had never seen the ocean.  

We had jobs waiting for us working for a company that contracted hotels to provide service at their pools. The responsibilities included keeping the deck tidy, lounge chairs in order, cleaning the pool in the mornings, and passing out towels to the hotel guests. In turn, the company was allowed to sell suntan products. 

Being so young, I was hired as a grimy. I cleaned the swimming pools, emptied trash, made towel runs to the laundry and anything else needed to keep the pool deck running smoothly. I also spent time in the hut listening to the salesman explaining the need for the Hawaiian Tropic products we featured. 

I learned quickly and after a couple of weeks, I was selling more products than the official salesman. I soon got my own pool deck and started a 50 plus year journey selling suncare products. 

And aloe is the reason I could even do the job. You see, I was a strawberry blonde, very light skinned of Irish blood. Being in the sun 10 hours a day for 120 straight days is not a good recipe for me. I went home every day with a slight sunburn and the aloe cream we had was my savior. I would use it every night to help heal the burn and prep me for another day in the sun. I did that for six straight summers between high school and college breaks. 

Aloe shaped my career. I have sold 100’s of thousands of bottles one-on-one to tourists from Florida to the Hawaiian Islands including in Las Vegas, Palm Springs, Hilton Head South Carolina and many other resort destinations.  

I later developed my own aloes and for 33 years Absolutely Natural’s best-selling products have always been our Rosehip Aloe and Pure Aloe with Tea Tree.   

What makes this raw ingredient so special?   

For one, its longevity. There is evidence that the Mesopotamian civilization used aloe for skin conditions around 2200 BC. The University of Texas El Paso in a study noted that several species of aloes have been used for centuries in traditional medicine in Europe, Africa, and Arabia. Aloe Vera has been recognized for its medicinal and cosmetic properties in ancient Greece, Rome, and China. The Papyrus Ebers, an Egyptian document from around 1550 BC, details formulas for using aloe with other ingredients to treat various ailments.  

For another is its versatility.  Consider the following: 

Aloe vera can help soothe and aid in the healing of a sunburn. It's often used for its cooling and anti-inflammatory properties, which can reduce pain and inflammation associated with sunburns.  

Moisturizing: Aloe vera contains polysaccharides that help retain moisture in the skin, making it a super moisturizer for dry or irritated skin.  

Antioxidant Protection: Aloe vera is rich in antioxidants, including vitamins A, C, and E, which help protect the skin from free radical damage and reduce the appearance of wrinkles.  

Exfoliating: Aloe vera contains salicylic acid, which can gently exfoliate the skin and remove dead skin cells.  

Aloe also can help reduce skin irritation, improve the appearance of skin elasticity, promote collagen production, and is suitable for sensitive skin.  

Exactly what is aloe?   

A lot of people think aloe is a cactus, but it is not. Aloe is a succulent that usually grows to 3 or 4 feet. But it can reach 6 feet tall and often does on aloe farms like those I have visited Puerto Rico.  

But not all aloe is created equally.  A lot of companies use aloe made by grinding the whole plant, both inner and outer leaf.  It’s much cheaper but unfortunately, vastly inferior. You see only the gel of the inner plant has skin benefits.   

Our supplier has developed a proprietary method of extracting gel. It is superior to just grinding the inner leaf.  They are one of the largest suppliers of aloe and have been in business for 53 years. Absolutely Natural has been purchasing products from them for 33 years. Their process: 

1. Organically Grown Leaves are Harvested 

2. Leaves Washed 

3. Grinder 

4. Pulp and Fiber Removed 

5. Heated Treated 

6. Carbon Filtration 

7. Concentrated 

8. pH Adjusted with Citric Acid 

9. Final Filtration 

10. Finished Goods Drummed 

Aloe is so important to me that nearly all of our emulsified products have it as a first ingredient, instead of water. Water is used as a cheap filler, but my philosophy is to put an ingredient that is so good for your skin, hair and scalp in everything. That includes all of our creams and lotions, shampoos, body washes, and conditioners.  

Best regards, 

Charley