You all know I’m a fan of using olive oil on skin and hair, but another all-star natural moisturizer for these uses and more around the home is shea butter. (Something about the name just even sounds luxurious, doesn’t it?)
This luxurious butter is very thick and solid at room temperature but has a buttery rich consistency that makes it ideal for use as a natural eye cream, lip balm, or body butter. Many studies show that it is especially good at penetrating the skin and contains 60% fat, making it highly emollient.
Thanks to some other special properties, shea butter does more than moisturize … it delivers key anti-inflammatory and anti-aging fatty acids right into the skin.
What Is Shea Butter?
Shea butter is a skin superfood that comes from the seeds of the fruit of the Shea (Karite) tree. It may offer mild UV protection (up to SPF ~6) and provides the skin with essential fatty acids and the nutrients necessary for collagen production.
Shea butter has been used in Africa and many other locations for years to improve skin and hair. It also has a long history of medicinal use, such as in wound care and even treating leprosy.
It’s also not uncommon in that part of the world to eat shea as well, much as we use palm oil in products. There’s differing opinions on whether or not it’s healthy to eat, and since some studies suggest that ingesting shea butter may interfere with the digestion of other proteins, I use it externally only.
Shea Butter Benefits
- Moisturizing: The concentration of natural vitamins and fatty acids in shea makes it incredibly nourishing and moisturizing for skin. It is often used to remedy dry skin and to help protect the skin’s natural oils.
- Reduces Inflammation: A 2010 study found that due to its cinnamic acid and other natural properties, shea butter was anti-inflammatory. One compound in particular, lupeol cinnamate, was found to reduce skin inflammation and even potentially help avoid skin mutations. This also makes it beneficial for some people with acne.
- Skin Smoothing: Shea aids in the skin’s natural collagen production and contains oleic, stearic, palmitic, and linolenic acids that protect and nourish the skin to prevent drying. With long-term use, many people report skin softening and strengthening as well as wrinkle reduction.
The good news is, it’s great to use on kids and babies too!
Ways to Use Shea Butter
Shea butter is one of the most versatile natural beauty ingredients and I use it daily in some form. I’ve used it for years in everything from my homemade lotion bars and original magnesium body butter to homemade lip balms and healing salves.
Some of my favorite uses for shea butter:
- By itself for face and body as a natural moisturizer
- In a shea butter lotion bar stick for easy use
- After sun or beach exposure to replenish skin
- Alone or in a pregnancy salve to ward off stretch marks
- As a natural cuticle cream
- As the best under-eye wrinkle remover and bag-reducer
- As a massage butter
- In my homemade velvety soft whipped body butter
- On sore/raw noses during a cold or flu
- Added to basic homemade lotion
- On scars to naturally help collagen production
- As a base for homemade deodorant
- By itself for low-grade sun protection
- Whipped into magnesium body butter
- As a natural baby-care product (alone) or ingredient in baby care recipes
- By itself on the lips or in homemade lip balms
- In a homemade shimmer lip balm
- On the eyelids before applying makeup to make it last longer
- To improve skin elasticity (some even say it helps with cellulite)
- On the hair or scalp (in mixture with other natural ingredients)
- In homemade liquid creme foundation and makeup
TIP: If the shea butter is too thick for what you’re trying to do, melt it over very low heat and then use. Do not let it get close to boiling or you will lose beneficial properties. You can also emulsify it with other oils using the technique in my lotion recipe.
What Kind of Shea Butter Is Better?
There is a huge variation in the quality of shea butter depending on the manufacturer, so if you’ve tried shea butter before and haven’t liked it, it may have been the brand.
The American Shea Butter Institute warns that one of the main healing components in shea butter, cinnamic acid, is less present in inferior brands. They have issued classifications of different grades of quality, and the best grade with the highest cinnamic acid content is Grade A.
I only use raw, unrefined, Grade A shea butter. There are many refined ones that are odor free and bleached to be completely white, but the refining process removes some of the beneficial properties.
Which to Buy
I order this one and have had great results, but good shea butter brands can also be found at many local health food stores. When it comes to choosing a better butter, just look for one that is:
- raw/unrefined
- unbleached
- organic
- Grade A
Caution: Before Using
If you get unrefined shea butter, that means it has not been filtered and may contain trace particles of the shea nut. I often gently heat my shea butter until it just melts and then pour through a cheesecloth or strainer to remove any particles. Once strained, I pour it into these (or any) silicone molds in pre-measured amounts (tablespoons, 1/4 cup, etc.) so that it is ready to use for natural beauty recipes.
Storing Shea Butter
I’m only comfortable using this butter externally. Ask a doc or dermatologist before using, especially with underlying skin conditions. Those with nut allergies should avoid or check with an allergist.
Store shea butter out of direct light or heat. Several sources suggest shea butter may go rancid or expire within 12-24 months, but since it has so many uses I never have a jar of it that long. Leave it out on your bathroom counter and watch it disappear!
This article was medically reviewed by Dr. Scott Soerries, MD, Family Physician and Medical Director of SteadyMD. As always, this is not personal medical advice and we recommend that you talk with your doctor.
Ever used shea butter? How did it work for you?
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I LOVE Shea butter!!! It doesn’t make my skin break out the way coconut oil does because I have acne-prone skin and works so well on dry skin and hair in the winter.
Hi I have a question! My face is really dry and i would love to use this on my face. What do you prefer, straight natural Shea Butter or mix it up to make a lotion? Thank you in advance!
You can use it straight
If it is mixed with other things like coconut oil and jojoba will it still have the same amount of beneficial use?
Yes
Hi Katie, i used to have hyperpigmentation and started applying a mixture of lemon and potatoe on face but then my skin started to peel leaving the new skin feeling tight, silky and it burned when i applied my mosturiser. I do not know whether this is a good thing and if my skin will be better…. am even afraid to continue using the mixture i still have hyperpigmentation here and there…. I thought it was helping, but now am not so sure. PLEASE HELP!! ??
I think it would help I you stopped using the lemon juice. It is known to be quite harsh!
I hope your skin has improved now!
I also inloved with shea butter. I’m using it in another 2 ways: 1) as nails and nails cuticles softener, sometimes mixing with almond or jojoba oil for better absorbtion and hydration – just gentle massaging every evening before bed; 2) for the feets also – after exfoliation massage into feets, put the socks on and leave them during the night. Magically soft feets, especially effective during the summertime 🙂
I used shea butter as a body cream,loved it but now I’m using coconut oil it smells divine and I also use it for my hair and cooking.
I found a sample of Shea Butter whipped body cream given to me buy a seller on Etsy. I thought… what’s the harm in trying it on my face? Even if I break out, it will eventually clear up. So I tried it and it’s the absolute best thing I’ve ever done for my face. Within 2 days (I kid you not!), my severely dry and dull face has life again! I couldn’t believe what a difference two days makes. I don’t think I will ever use anything else on my face – though I will add different essential oils to the shea/coconut oil recipe!! Absolute favorite!! ?
I am 54 and still have acne. But I scared so easily that I tried the 100% Shea butter on my scars and found that it healed the scars and cleared the horrible acne scars after a few weeks. I have to use concealer on my face and I’m so self-conscious that this is a God send. I have scars on my arms that have started to clear and use it for my scalp and under eyes and hair.
Coconut oil either after a baking soda scrub or mixed with baking soda. Then apply the coconut oil. Its 15x better at preventing acne, repairs sun damage, is an antioxidant and contains vit e and pro vit a.
The bs alone may be too acidic but it will even out your skin (add some lemon juice).
Still finish with coconut oil to balance your ph levels.
This is my first time to use African shea butter so I’ll let you know how it works later thank you
I have been using shea butter for a year and a half now and love it. I put it on my lips at bedtime and in the morning after washing my face letting it moisturize while I put on my makeup. I cannot believe I used to use vaseline for bedtime. I also use the shea butter around my eyes or any dry spots, at first it’s firm but if I let my little blob sit for a couple of seconds on my warm skin it melts enough to spread. A great staple to have in your healthy natural beauty routine.
Because of a severe coconut allergy, I found shea butter through a paramedic friend of the family. I have loved it and used it for absolutely everything, even in spaghetti noodles at the last minute when I found we were out of oil and butter!!! I’ve used it on my rough feet, my hubbie’s rough feet, and as a massage agent on his devastating cancer scars. This stuff is a miracle in a jar, and I cannot say enough nice things about it.
For your whipped bodybutter what do you think of using almond oil instead of cocoa or mango butter?
It will have a lighter consistency, but you could certainly try it…
It may be softer and more liquidy, but you can play around with the ratio. Also, beeswax is great to add to harden up the consistency of something.
I substituted with almond oil and it turned out very nice
I love me some Shea Butter!
Haven’t tried it around the eyes for wrinkles, but it did take the sting out of my eye when I rubbed my eye after chopping jalapenos! I didn’t put it in my eye, just along the lash line. It worked pretty much instantly.
Also it takes the sting out of jellyfish stings.
And I always use it for chapped lips especially for the kids – They don’t like anything minty and the shea butter is so soothing.
Is Shea Butter still considered raw when it’s heated? Like for the homemade lotions and stuff? Or are the benefits best if it is used just raw out of the jar? Does the heating/melting process make it not raw anymore?
It just heats to about 110 degrees to melt so it keeps the benefits. It is never brought to a boil or even close…
Is Shea Butter good for oily skin too? Because I have REALLY oily skin.
Its perfect for oily skin
I have oily skin also, but since I’ve been putting shea butter on my face at night (after washing) as a moisturizer, I’ve noticed my face doesn’t get as oily during the day. It also doesn’t make me break out at all. I was really hesitant about putting “butter” on my face, especially since it feels a little greasy, but I’ve tried it every night for the past month or so, and I love it. It absorbs well, doesn’t make me break out, mouisturizes my face, and has actually improved my acne scars a bit. I can’t live without this stuff
Please does Shea butter help in removing sport (pimples)?
In my experience and opinion, oily skin is your skins way of saying nourish and moisturise me, I’m not getting enough oils. Shea butter is an excellent way to treat your skin. Before I discovered it, I had oily skin in the T Zone, but now I have no such issues. Makes a fabulous hand cream too. I could never live without my Shea Butter!
I’ve been using Shea butter on my skin cancers on my face for almost a year now and my cancers are almost completely gone. I wish I had taken before and after pictures. I’m 60 years old and look look 20 years younger. Shea butter is a miracle!