Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice

What it is

Aloe vera leaf juice is the best-known plant component in cosmetics altogether. It consists of about 99 per cent water; the remainder is sugar compounds, minerals, vitamins and organic acids. The moisture-binding effect at the surface is therefore readily explained — anything beyond that less so.

More important for the assessment is a detail the ingredient list does not reveal. The leaf yields two quite different fractions: the clear gel from the interior and a yellowish sap directly beneath the rind. This outer sap contains anthraquinones, above all aloin, and is usually removed during processing with activated charcoal. Whether and how thoroughly that was done is stated nowhere.

Why

• Why the classification reads “low risk”: a substance consisting of 99 per cent water, applied externally and predominantly rinsed off, offers little to attack. Case reports of acute eczema, contact urticaria and dermatitis after topical application do exist, but they are rare.
• The short fields were reworded. The function read “moisturising, soothing”, the reason “conditions and soothes the scalp”. The moisture-binding effect is plausible and remains; for a soothing effect on the scalp no evidence was found, and it has been removed.
• The anthraquinone content is the real open question. Aloin sits in the sap beneath the rind and is removed by the usual processing with activated charcoal. Industry specifications exist for the level that may remain; they have not been checked here and are not quoted second-hand. In any case, the ingredient list does not reveal which process was used.
• A finding from the animal literature deserves mention and framing: non-decolorised whole leaf extract, drunk by rats, was associated with changes to the intestinal lining. That concerns drinking an untreated extract over a long period, not a rinse-off hair product. The finding appears here for context and not as an assessment of these products.
• “Leaf juice” and “leaf extract” are two separate entries in the INCI system, and this lexicon carries both. Which fraction and which process lie behind each is not reliably distinguished by the name, however — that is described more fully in the neighbouring record.

When the assessment differs

• Known aloe intolerance: case reports of eczema and contact urticaria after topical application exist; they are rare but decisive for the person concerned.
• Irritated or broken scalp skin: through a disturbed barrier more components of the mixture reach the skin.
• Products that stay on the hair: in this lexicon the substance also appears in a reshaping product.
• Expecting a healing effect: aloe vera is traditionally used for burns and wounds. That concerns different preparations and different applications from a hair care product.
• Salon staff: daily contact with many products containing plant extracts on the hands.

Open questions

• Anthraquinone content of the raw material used and the decolorisation process applied: not documented and not readable from the ingredient list.
• Concentration in the specific product: not available. With a raw material consisting of 99 per cent water that matters particularly.
• Evidence for a soothing effect on the scalp: none found here.
• Transferability of findings from feeding studies in rats to external, rinse-off use: not given; the finding appears in the text for context.
• Regulatory status: not checked; industry specifications on aloin content are not quoted second-hand.

Sources for this assessment

• Final Report on the Safety Assessment of Aloe Andongensis Extract und weiterer Aloe-Bestandteile. International Journal of Toxicology, 2007. Beschreibt die Unterscheidung von Gel und Latex, den Anthrachinongehalt und nennt Fallberichte über akutes Ekzem, Kontakturtikaria und Dermatitis nach äußerlicher Anwendung. Begutachtete Fachzeitschrift, abgerufen am 12.09.2026.
• Toxicologic Assessment of a Commercial Decolorized Whole Leaf Aloe Vera Juice. 2013. Beschreibt die beiden Fraktionen des Blattes, die Entfärbung mit Aktivkohle und den Hintergrund der Befunde aus Fütterungsversuchen an Nagern. Begutachtete Arbeit mit offenem Zugang, abgerufen am 12.09.2026.

Related substances

Applies to: Plant extracts

• Adansonia Digitata Seed Extract — Conditioning, antioxidant
• Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract — Plant extract, skin conditioning
• Anthemis Nobilis Flower Extract — Plant extract, skin conditioning
• Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract — Plant extract, skin conditioning

Further substances from the same group for which a long-form assessment already exists.