Toxicologic Assessment of a Commercial Decolorized Whole Leaf Aloe Vera Juice, Lily of the Desert Filtered Whole Leaf Juice with Aloesorb

Aloe vera, a common ingredient in cosmetics, is increasingly being consumed as a beverage supplement. Although consumer interest in aloe likely stems from its association with several health benefits, a concern has also been raised by a National Toxicology Program Report that a nondecolorized whole leaf aloe vera extract taken internally by rats was associated with intestinal mucosal hyperplasia and ultimately malignancy. We tested a decolorized whole leaf (DCWL) aloe vera, treated with activated charcoal to remove the latex portion of the plant, for genotoxicity in bacteria, acute/subacute toxicity in B6C3F1 mice, and subchronic toxicity in F344 rats. We found this DCWL aloe vera juice to be nongenotoxic in histidine reversion and DNA repair assays. Following acute administration, mice exhibited no adverse signs at 3- or 14-day evaluation periods. When fed to male and female F344 rats over 13 weeks, DCWL aloe led to no toxicity as assessed by behavior, stools, weight gain, feed consumption, organ weights, and hematologic or clinical chemistry profiles. These rats had intestinal mucosal morphologies—examined grossly and microscopically—that were similar to controls. Our studies show that oral administration of this DCWL aloe juice has a different toxicology profile than that of the untreated aloe juice at exposures up to 13 weeks. 1. Introduction Aloe vera is a common ingredient in cosmetics, skin care products, and increasingly, beverages and food products [1]. Recent consumer interest in aloe beverages may stem from the association of aloe juice with a variety of both anecdotal and experimental research-supported health benefits including the prevention or treatment of various tumors [2, 3], arthritis [4], diabetes [5], enhanced immunity [6], and decreased cholesterol levels [7]. Aloe juice is approximately 99% water [8] and the remainder consists of minerals, vitamins, polysaccharides, lipids, phenolic compounds, and organic acids. According to the International Aloe Scientific Council, the aloe leaf can be processed into two types of juices for commercial use: inner leaf gel juice and decolorized whole leaf juice [9]. Inner leaf gel juice is produced from only the gelatinous fillet of the leaf. Decolorized whole leaf juice is produced by grinding the leaf followed by treatment of extracted juice with activated charcoal to remove aloe “latex” [10]. Charcoal treatment is necessary since the latex, which exists as a separate liquid between the outer rind and inner fillet gel, contains bitter phenolic molecules including anthraquinone C- and