SHEA BUTTER
Are you familiar with this
moisturizer? Its 100% natural and organic and it can really improve dry, wintry skin. I
started using it several months ago and just love it. There are absolutely no
chemicals in it! It is almost completely unscented, and is solid at room
temperature (like a tub of butter). All you need is a tiny bit in the palm of
your hand, really an amount the size of a pea! Wait a couple of
seconds for it to melt into luxurious oil and spread it onto any dry area of
your body, including your feet, knees, elbows, arms, etc. At night during the
winter especially, I put a thin layer on my face before bed, to let it really
moisturize overnight. In the morning I can see a clear difference! My skin is
plumped, hydrated, smooth, and happy!
Where does
shea butter come from?
Shea butter
is extracted from the Karite, or Mangifolia, tree found only in Central and West
Africa. Nineteen countries are involved with the processing of the nuts. This
region of Africa is known as the Shea Belt. Many parts of the tree have been
used for food and beauty products for over 5000 years. Europeans were introduced
to it about 200 years ago. Today, most of the production is done by women as an
important economic activity, as the money they earn allows them to support their
families and buy necessary household goods as well as uniforms for their
children to be able to attend school.
The website,
www.pioneerthinking.com
states:
“The process of making
shea butter, or karite, is long and arduous for the women of Africa. They
awake(n) early and trek up to 15 km (9 mi) to collect the fruits of the Karite
Nut tree. With up to 40 kg (88 lbs) of fruits upon their heads, the women and
children head back to the village to begin the process of extracting the butter
from the kernel of the fruit. The pits are first removed from the fruit, boiled,
sun-dried and finally roasted. When the pits have been completely dehydrated,
they are handcrushed. This laborious work takes an average of 20 hours to
produce 1 kg (2.2 lbs) of shea butter.”
The fruit of
the tree looks like an orange-colored plum. It is edible and is high in
anti-oxidants. Inside the fruit is the nut the size of a pecan. The nut’s shell
is removed and the butter is the oily extract from the seed inside the nut.
The shea
butter contains many bioactive ingredients and is high in fatty acids and
triglycerides. It contains Vitamins A, E, F. responsible for cell regeneration,
shiny hair, and combating the effects of free radicals. It is also used as a
cooking oil and reduces LDL cholesterol, muscle soreness, and the pain of
osteoarthritis. Many chocolate manufacturers use it as a substitute for cocoa
butter. In the beauty industry, shea butter is in soaps, moisturizers, hand
cream, shampoo, lip balm, and various hair care products. It is also used in pet
care products!
Here are some
of the wonderful benefits of shea butter: skin-softener,
moisture additive, anti-wrinkle cream, it erases the effects of sun
overexposure, it soothes eczema, anti-itch, burn/wound cream, for dry hair,
shaving cream, pregnancy stretch marks, insect bites. Another perk is that it
won't cause an allergic reaction to those sensitive to nuts.
One
final and important note: there
are two ways to extract the oils from the seed. One is as mentioned above--the
natural, manual-labor process. The other is done faster using hexane,
a petroleum-based solvent that extracts a larger amount of the oil from the
seed, thereby resulting in a lower cost to the consumer. Many shea butter
products sold in the U.S. have been extracted using hexane: not something you'd
want to put on your skin!! Because the "real thing" is hard to find, I have gone
ahead and purchased some from a company that I trust and I am offering it
directly to you to try!
