Shea butter

In Africa, women are engaged in harvesting karite (or shea) fruits and preparing butter from their seeds. For many, this is the only source of income, which is why oil is called “women’s gold” there. However, in terms of value for our skin, it is really comparable to precious metal.

What is shea butter

This oil is from the seeds of the fruit of the tree with the Latin name Vittellaria paradoxa. In Mali it is called shi, in Senegal it is called shea. An amazing tree grows only in the natural conditions of West Africa. Numerous attempts to open shea nurseries were unsuccessful.

Oil in West Africa is extracted using a technology based on manual labor. It is practically a ritual in which only women take part. During the cooking process, almost all the beneficial properties of the oil are preserved. True, due to repeated heating, it loses some of the vitamins A and E.

Natural shea butter is stored for 2-3 years without the need for conservation. Locals eat it, treat various diseases with it and, of course, apply it to the skin.

According to scientists, the skin of the lucky people who have free access to shea butter is healthy in all respects.

Shea butter also has the scientific name Butyrospermum Parkii, named after the Scottish explorer and surgeon Mungo Park, who studied shea. And in the composition of cosmetics, oil is often listed as Shea Butter.

In the industrial production of shea butter, cold-pressed technology is more often used in order to preserve the beneficial substances to the maximum. But sometimes chemical methods are also used, which reduces the cost of the product, but, alas, reduces its quality.

Shea butter has long been used to heal the skin.

Shea butter is hard, but softens easily at 35 degrees – that is, just in the hands. The smell can be different: hand-made and much more expensive oil smells of smoke, while industrial oil has a pleasant nutty aroma.

Back to the table of contents

Benefits of shea butter

Shea butter has many health benefits.

  • Promotes hydration of the skin, preventing the evaporation of moisture.

  • Nourishes the skin.

  • Improves cell regeneration.

  • It has a powerful protective effect.

Back to the table of contents

What’s in

Shea butter is a unique complex of monounsaturated (oleic, linoleic) and saturated (stearic) fatty acids necessary for the skin to maintain turgor, firmness, elasticity and youth. It also contains other useful substances, vitamins and minerals.

If you go into details, in the composition of the oil you can find:

  • stearic acid, 50%;

  • linoleic acid, 6%;

  • oleic acid, 40%;

  • triglycerides that enhance the barrier functions of tissues;

  • caristerols (phytosterols), related to lipids of skin cell membranes, capable of slowing down the aging process;

  • terpene alcohols – they effectively fight free radicals and inflammation, are powerful UV filters, protect collagen fibers;

  • natural latex, which absorbs ultraviolet radiation, increases skin elasticity and strengthens the hydrolipidic barrier;

  • tocopherol (vitamin E), which has an intense anti-inflammatory, healing, antioxidant and even oncoprotective effect;

  • vitamin A (retinol), which stimulates healing, regeneration and metabolism at the cellular level.

Shea butter nourishes and moisturizes the skin, has a good effect on the hair.

Back to the table of contents

Shea butter for skin beauty and health

Thanks to its rich composition, shea butter helps deliver effective ingredients to skin cells. All this makes it a super valuable ingredient in cosmetics. And the oil has been used in the beauty industry for over 20 years. It is used both in pure form and in the composition:

  • lip balms;

  • hair products (shampoos, conditioners, masks);

  • moisturizing, nourishing and protective face creams;

  • creams for hands and body;

  • sunscreen and restorative products;

  • decorative cosmetics.

Shea butter is especially valued as an ingredient in anti-age cosmetics, as it stimulates the slowed down metabolic processes of aging skin and cell regeneration.

Back to the table of contents

Safety measures

Shea butter almost never causes allergies, but there are cases of individual intolerance to the product. This is more about the oil in its pure form, since it is contained in cosmetics in very small proportions. But for allergy sufferers, it is better to do a sensitivity test before using the product.

Back to the table of contents

Cosmetics with shea butter

  • Lip balm Cicaplast Lèvres, La Roche-Posay with a hypoallergenic formula protects and restores the skin of the lips, suitable even for children.

  • Nourishing balm Neovadiol Magistral, Vichy strengthens thinned, weakened skin during menopause, making it more dense and elastic.

  • Calming multi-restorative balm Cicaplast Baume B5, La Roche-Posay relieves dryness, restores a protective barrier, provides comfort. Suitable for use on the face (including the lips), and on the body with irritation, peeling, damage. Effectively soothes the skin after epilation.

  • Balm to restore the skin with sunburn Сapital Idéal Soleil, Vichy soothes the skin after exposure to the sun, neutralizes the negative effects of ultraviolet radiation. Suitable for sensitive skin.

  • Oil-mask for hair 3-in-1 “Triple Recovery” Fructis, Garnier nourishes the hair, giving it softness and shine.

Back to the table of contents

Leave a Reply