Shea Butter

Shea butter is a fat that is extracted from shea tree nuts. It is off-white or ivory-colored and has creamy consistency that is easy to spread on your skin. There are four types of shea butter; namely:

1. Raw Shea Butter: This involves drying the shea nuts and removing the outer shell. Crushing the nuts, roasting and grinding, boiling the shea flesh in water and collecting the butter of the water surface. There is no additional processing, it usually contains some impurities and has a characteristic smoky smell which comes from roasting. The color of raw shea butter is deep yellow.

2. Unrefined Shea Butter: This is very similar to raw shea butter, but it is filtered without affecting the quality, no chemical or preservative is added. Unrefined shea butter is beige in color and has a nutty scent.

3. Refined Shea Butter: This is extracted during a process of filtering and odor removing, which uses high levels of heat. Sometimes, the addition of chemicals such as hexane also come into play. The color is removed during the process, so this type of shea butter is white and does not have a fragrance.

4. Ultra-refined Shea Butter: It goes through at least two filtering system which result in changing its composition. The consistency can vary from firm to liquid and the color is very white.

Shea butter is widely used in cosmetics as a moisturizer, salve or lotion. Shea butter is edible and can be used in food preparation as a substitute for cocoa butter. Shea butter is rich in vitamin A, E and F. It helps to improve skin conditions, including blemishes, wrinkle, eczema, and dermatitis. It has a strong antioxidant and anti-aging agent.