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Aloe Ferox: A Promising Therapy For Irritable Bowel Syndrome

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The document summarizes several ingredients found in a dietary supplement product called UMZU. It finds that most of the ingredients like cascara sagrada, bentonite clay, slippery elm extract, and cayenne pepper extract provide little benefit and act primarily as laxatives. Milk thistle and aloe ferox show some evidence of helping conditions like liver disease and irritable bowel syndrome, but are still deemed unnecessary for most users. Overall, the supplement is characterized as using "snake oil" marketing to push the idea that laxatives can purge the body of toxins, when in reality the gastrointestinal system already effectively removes waste and a healthy diet provides better support.

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Aloe Ferox: A Promising Therapy For Irritable Bowel Syndrome

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54 views2 pages
The document summarizes several ingredients found in a dietary supplement product called UMZU. It finds that most of the ingredients like cascara sagrada, bentonite clay, slippery elm extract, and cayenne pepper extract provide little benefit and act primarily as laxatives. Milk thistle and aloe ferox show some evidence of helping conditions like liver disease and irritable bowel syndrome, but are still deemed unnecessary for most users. Overall, the supplement is characterized as using "snake oil" marketing to push the idea that laxatives can purge the body of toxins, when in reality the gastrointestinal system already effectively removes waste and a healthy diet provides better support.

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UMZU

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The document summarizes several ingredients found in a dietary supplement product called UMZU. It finds that most of the ingredients like cascara sagrada, bentonite clay, slippery elm extract, and cayenne pepper extract provide little benefit and act primarily as laxatives. Milk thistle and aloe ferox show some evidence of helping conditions like liver disease and irritable bowel syndrome, but are still deemed unnecessary for most users. Overall, the supplement is characterized as using "snake oil" marketing to push the idea that laxatives can purge the body of toxins, when in reality the gastrointestinal system already effectively removes waste and a healthy diet provides better support.

Copyright:

© All Rights Reserved
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
Download as docx, pdf, or txt
54 views2 pages

Aloe Ferox: A Promising Therapy For Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Uploaded by

Yes
The document summarizes several ingredients found in a dietary supplement product called UMZU. It finds that most of the ingredients like cascara sagrada, bentonite clay, slippery elm extract, and cayenne pepper extract provide little benefit and act primarily as laxatives. Milk thistle and aloe ferox show some evidence of helping conditions like liver disease and irritable bowel syndrome, but are still deemed unnecessary for most users. Overall, the supplement is characterized as using "snake oil" marketing to push the idea that laxatives can purge the body of toxins, when in reality the gastrointestinal system already effectively removes waste and a healthy diet provides better support.

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UMZU

Cascara Sagrada: A shrub, and the properties come from its dried bark. It was
once an OTC (over the counter) drug for constipation but the manufacturers didn’t
want to comply with safety checks by the FDA so it lost its status as a drug. It is
now a “dietary supplement” as they are not overseen by FDA.
Sometimes used in flavorings, as constipation remedies, and in some sunscreens.
Verdict: This is a nothing component. It should only be used in constipated people
medically but likely wouldn’t hurt someone to take in small amounts. Not as good
as eating healthy foods that are high in fiber (vegetables). They say “has been
shown to aid hemorrhoids, kill bacteria, etc.” blah blah blah, that is all fluff. I can
prescribe a “dietary supplement” that I claim, “has been shown to cure cancer!”
and name it something fancy and it be just water.

Bentonite Clay: A material that is negatively charged and absorbs positively


charged particles in and binds to them. This makes it a cleaner. It is used in pet
litter to clump on urine. It will bind to metals and “toxins” in your gut.
“Some research shows it may remove pesticides and help treat metal poisoning.
But more human studies are needed.
You don’t usually need help to clean out your body. Your kidneys and liver already
do that. The fiber from fruits and vegetables also helps.”
It is a binder used for drilling mud, maybe some “natural” skin care treatments,
decolorizing and clearing wines and oils in the production process, and to carry
pesticides in industrial use. As well as a sealant, adhesive, and in pet litter.
In medicine it is used as a bulk laxative and in some dermatological formulas
(skin). It is being studied in use for wound dressing.
Verdict: The indication in UMZU is to “pull toxins in a gentle way” which is fluff.
All the crap its saying is to say “it will make you poop”. It has nothing anyone
really needs but it wouldn’t harm you. Just eating lots of fiber foods (vegetables)
would do better.

Aloe Ferox: Also known as “bitter aloe” used as a non-bitter gel in cosmetics and
as a purgative medication. In the study “ALOE FEROX: A PROMISING THERAPY
FOR IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME” A compelling argument can be seen for its
merits in treating IBS. However, in a non-IBS patient it is likely unnecessary. I do
not see an obvious contraindication.
Verdict: This is laxative and will help you poop a lot. It seems the most legit of the
things so far to do something but I am unsure if its something you need.
Milk Thistle: “Milk thistle is a plant named for the white veins on its large prickly
leaves. One of the active ingredients in milk thistle called silymarin is extracted
from the plant's seeds. Silymarin is believed to have antioxidant properties. Milk
thistle is sold as an oral capsule, tablet, and liquid extract. People mainly use the
supplement to treat liver conditions.” – Mayo Clinic
Has evidence to treat indigestion and liver disease.
Verdict: I don’t have more to say than what the Mayo Clinic does, so I’ll agree
that it is generally safe. You don’t (as far as I know) have any of the
contraindications (like diabetes). However, you don’t have any indications either,
unless you have indigestion. Now there is a chance that the bioavailability of this
med will be nil as it is combined with a supplement that is making you poop. So,
absorbing it in to help your liver will not happen much.

Cayenne Pepper Extract: This is nothing. Its like adding pepper to your
supplement.

Slippery Elm Extract: This will, at best, help you poop. It is largely a nothing.

Overall: This drug is mostly full of snake oil. I think that largely it is selling the
idea of “Take a bunch of laxatives it’ll get the poop out of you! Poop is toxic and
yucky! Get it out of you quick!” However, that’s foolish.
GI web has an article on cleansing (which is what this is) which I think is perfect
as an explanation:
https://www.giwebmd.com/blog/2019/2/14/trust-your-gut-how-cleanses-impact-
your-gastrointestinal-health

The main idea in a nutshell is that although these cleanses will, at best, increase
vitamin and mineral intake and cause some weight loss, it can also strain your GI
system. As with juice cleanses of the past, they DO NOT eliminate toxins from
your body, and DO NOT give your GI system a break.

Laxatives overwork your gut muscles to push the contents out quicker. They also
cause you to have less time to absorb what is in your intestines, meaning you get
less absorption of nutrients. No medicine is really gonna do a better job than a
healthy GI tract will at absorbing nutrients and expelling waste.

Except in the case of pathology or disease (like you having IBS or constipation)
there is no real reason to take this literally crap drug.

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