Natural Heroes 701. Shea Butter (Organic and Unrefined)

What is Shea butter (Organic and Unrefined)?

Shea butter is also known as Karité butter. It is a wonderful moisturizing butter for skin and hair. Its Latin name is Butyrospermum Parkii.

Shea butter is made from the nuts of the Shea tree / Karité tree. This tree is also known as the Tree of Life, due to its many special properties.

Shea trees originate from the African Savanna, and most Shea is still made in this region. It has also been used in Africa for years, for everything! For skin care, hair care, and as a household remedy. Fortunately, this Shea butter is also becoming increasingly well-known in the Netherlands.

Shea butter consists, among other things, of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids with a high percentage of unsaponified triglycerides, stearic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, and palmitic acid, provitamin A, vitamin E, vitamin F, and Allantoin.

At room temperature, the butter is quite hard, but in your hands, it melts into a wonderful butter and on the skin, it provides intense hydration. How is Shea butter made?

Shea butter is made from the nuts of the Shea tree. Producing Shea butter is a lengthy process. First, you need a lot of patience. The tree only produces its first fruits after 20 years, and a large quantity of fruit is only harvested after 45 years. However, the tree can grow for over 200 years.

To make Shea butter, first, the shell of the nut is cracked from the fruit. Here, the nuts are washed and dried. After this, the nuts are cracked and roasted. Then the nuts are ground so finely that a dark-colored paste is formed.

This paste is kneaded for hours (by hand) and purified with clean water. After this, the butter is gently heated until the fresh Shea butter floats to the top. This layer is skimmed off and dried to become the Shea butter you find in the jar.

Benefits of Shea butter

Where to begin? Shea butter has so many benefits!

Especially for dry, sensitive, irritated, flaky, red, rough, and mature skin, but hair also greatly benefits from Shea butter. For example, Shea butter is beneficial for pregnancy stretch marks and striae, wrinkles, scars, and chapped skin.

Shea butter ensures that the skin can retain moisture well, stimulates good circulation, and is a natural antioxidant.

Protects the skin (barrier)
Shea butter contains many fatty acids such as stearic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, and palmitic acid. These fatty acids are naturally present in our skin. When you apply Shea butter to the skin, it creates a protective layer, making it more difficult for moisture to escape from the skin.

Hydrates the skin
Shea butter intensely hydrates the skin! The essential fatty acids and vitamins A, E, and F in Shea butter ensure supple and hydrated skin.

Reduces fine lines
Shea butter stimulates cell renewal, keeps the skin supple, and nourishes the skin. The vitamin A in Shea butter stimulates cell division and collagen production, thereby improving elasticity and skin condition.

Healing and soothing
Shea butter has a healing effect on dry, red skin and soothes itching. Among other things, Vitamin F provides a restorative effect for the skin, and this butter is therefore excellent for use on sunburned skin (after sun exposure).

How to use Shea Butter?

Use Shea Butter purely on the skin or incorporate it into your homemade skincare products.

It is a fantastic eye cream, lip balm, hand cream, body butter, pregnancy cream, scar cream, or hair mask.

Tips for using Shea Butter

• Shea Butter is a fairly hard substance. You can rub a little in your hand, and the Shea Butter will melt and become a buttery substance. You can apply this to your face or body.

• If you find it difficult to get the Shea Butter out of the jar, you can gently heat it by placing the jar on the radiator or in a hot water bath.

• Do you want to make the Shea Butter softer and easier to spread? You can gently heat it in a double boiler and add another carrier oil. Do not heat above 30 degrees, as it will lose some of its beneficial properties.
  Shea Butter has a nutty, smoky scent. If you don't like this, you can add your favorite essential oils.

What is the difference with Shea Nilotica?

Shea Butter (Vitellaria Parodoxa) comes from West Africa and from a different type of tree than Shea Nilotica (Vitellaria Nilotica), which mainly grows in East Africa.

Shea Butter has a different smell because the nuts are cooked. This releases more aroma and is sometimes perceived as a smoky smell. The nuts for Shea Nilotica are cold-pressed, which releases less smell.

What is the difference with Shea Butter (refined)?

Refined means that the scent and color have been removed from the product through a factory process. This may result in the loss of certain vitamins, but its effectiveness is retained. These products are often used for cosmetics or by customers who want a fragrance-free product.

 Side effects of Shea butter

For people with a nut allergy, it is advisable to be careful when using Shea butter. Shea butter comes from the nuts of the Shea tree. Always test on a small patch of skin first, wait 24 hours, and see if a skin reaction occurs.