If you’ve ever used products on your face that claim to be hydrating, chances are, you’ve experienced the skin care benefits of shea butter. Shea butter has been a skin care staple for so much longer than it’s been viral online. A holy grail for generations, it’s a tried-and-true go-to for those who seek rich hydration. Shea butter isn’t a one-hit wonder, though. It can play a multitude of roles in your regimen, some of which may surprise you. Keep reading to get a deeper understanding of this popular skin care ingredient and what it can do for your skin.
What is Shea Butter?
Shea butter is the fat extracted from the nuts of African shea trees. Shea butter is often called “women’s gold,” as it creates vital economic opportunities for women in rural African communities. From beginning to end, this is a time-intensive and labor-intensive process, with the trees producing fruit after 20 years and taking up to 50 years to reach maturity.
The nuts are boiled, then removed from the outer shell, typically by hand. Once the nuts are extracted from the shells, they are roasted to release their natural fats. Next comes grinding and mixing with water, at which point the mixture is left to rest so the oils separate from the solids. After a while, the oil is skimmed, filtered and cooled. As the temperature lowers, it solidifies into the creamy substance we know as shea butter.
Shea butter contains five main fatty acids that contribute to its skin care benefits:
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Oleic Acid / Omega 9: a fatty acid also found in sebum, or your skin’s natural oils.
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Stearic Acid: moisturizes, creates a moisture barrier, and contributes to shea butter’s thicker consistency.
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Linoleic Acid / Omega 6: essential fatty acid that helps soothe inflammation and support collagen production while regulating your skin’s natural oil production.
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Palmitic Acid: saturated fatty acid that helps soften and hydrate the skin.
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Arachidic Acid: saturated fat that helps shea butter form a barrier to lock in moisture.
Benefits of Shea Butter
As you may be able to tell from the fatty acid breakdown above, shea butter skin benefits are abundant. At its core, shea butter is a deeply hydrating substance. Not only does it provide moisturizing effects, but it locks it in by reinforcing the skin barrier, improving retention. But the advantages don’t stop there.
Vitamins A and E in shea butter help smooth and boost cell turnover, while protecting your skin from free radical damage with its antioxidant properties. Combined with the nourishing fatty acids, they offer the anti-aging benefits of improved skin elasticity and more youthful appearance.
Shea butter is excellent when dealing with irritated skin. The Omega 6 essential fatty acids along with triterpenes (organic compounds found in plants) deliver anti-inflammatory traits that can reduce redness or discomfort from skin conditions or even sunburn.
Using Shea Butter for Sensitive Skin
Shea Butter is a great choice for sensitive skin looking for a break. As mentioned, it can help with reducing inflammation and redness caused by conditions like eczema, or just generally reactive skin. As it fortifies the skin barrier, it promotes skin healing. Shea butter is also considered non-comedogenic, meaning that it’s unlikely to clog pores, ideal for providing intense moisture to acne-prone skin without congestion.
The fatty acids can also help balance oily skin, as pores produce excess oil to overcompensate for dryness. Shea butter’s fatty acids help regulate natural sebum production by providing hydration and thinning out excess oil on the surface of the skin.
Cocoa Butter vs Shea Butter
Compared to cocoa butter, another plant-based moisturizer rich in fatty acids, shea butter is more suitable for the face and for broader skin types. It has a softer, lighter consistency and is better for acne-prone skin due to its non-comedogenic properties. Cocoa butter is a better choice for body care as it’s slightly thicker and has a stronger natural scent.
Shea Butter Skin Care Products to Try
With moisture and barrier health cornerstones in K-Beauty, it’s no surprise that shea butter is a staple for Korean skin care routines. Here are some easy ways to work shea butter into your everyday regimen.
One of the more common ways to use this timeless ingredient is in a shea butter face cream like the Centella Phyto & 5 Peptide Concentrate Cream. Paired with soothing centella and a hydrating and anti-aging Peptide complex, the shea butter in this formula helps prevent water loss while smoothing skin texture. This cream has been clinically tested to show improvement in skin moisture by 41%+ after just 4 weeks of use and almost 30% improvement in the appearance of wrinkles in the same amount of time. It’s great for both night time routines and in the morning, as the squalene and caffeine brighten and de-puff.
Shea butter is a key ingredient in our Centella Sunflower Makeup-Melting Cleansing Balm. This melts away makeup, SPF, dirt and oil from the day while leaving the skin soft and hydrated. Cleansing balms are personally my favorite way to remove makeup, and this one feels gentle but gets everything off– even waterproof mascara! It never makes my skin feel stripped like other removal products, and actually nourishes my dry and sensitive skin while thoroughly removing impurities.
My new favorite way to use shea butter: on the lips with the haruharu wonder Rose PDRN Peptide Glowy Balm. This silky balm not only instantly floods my chronically dry lips with hydration, but they stay feeling hydrated longer thanks to shea butter’s barrier support. PDRN skin care is having a moment, and for good reason. It helps skin renewal, stimulates collagen production and can help improve texture. All of those benefits packed into a lip balm is chef’s kiss… literally!
Whether it’s a supporting ingredient or the main character in the formula, shea butter has been and always will be a holy grail *it* ingredient in our favorite skin care products.
Meet the Author
Miranda has been a trusted voice in the online beauty community since 2012, sharing her reviews, tips and tutorials on social media and her blog. Her expertise has earned her recognition as a repeat judge for the Glamour Beauty Awards and features in publications like Seventeen Magazine and Allure Magazine. Connect with her on Instagram.
We All Use Shea Butter… But Do You Know What It Actually Does?
If you’ve ever used products on your face that claim to be hydrating, chances are, you’ve experienced the skin care benefits of shea butter. Shea butter has been a skin care staple for so much longer than it’s been viral online. A holy grail for generations, it’s a tried-and-true go-to for those who seek rich hydration. Shea butter isn’t a one-hit wonder, though. It can play a multitude of roles in your regimen, some of which may surprise you. Keep reading to get a deeper understanding of this popular skin care ingredient and what it can do for your skin.
What is Shea Butter?
Shea butter is the fat extracted from the nuts of African shea trees. Shea butter is often called “women’s gold,” as it creates vital economic opportunities for women in rural African communities. From beginning to end, this is a time-intensive and labor-intensive process, with the trees producing fruit after 20 years and taking up to 50 years to reach maturity.
The nuts are boiled, then removed from the outer shell, typically by hand. Once the nuts are extracted from the shells, they are roasted to release their natural fats. Next comes grinding and mixing with water, at which point the mixture is left to rest so the oils separate from the solids. After a while, the oil is skimmed, filtered and cooled. As the temperature lowers, it solidifies into the creamy substance we know as shea butter.
Shea butter contains five main fatty acids that contribute to its skin care benefits:
Benefits of Shea Butter
As you may be able to tell from the fatty acid breakdown above, shea butter skin benefits are abundant. At its core, shea butter is a deeply hydrating substance. Not only does it provide moisturizing effects, but it locks it in by reinforcing the skin barrier, improving retention. But the advantages don’t stop there.
Vitamins A and E in shea butter help smooth and boost cell turnover, while protecting your skin from free radical damage with its antioxidant properties. Combined with the nourishing fatty acids, they offer the anti-aging benefits of improved skin elasticity and more youthful appearance.
Shea butter is excellent when dealing with irritated skin. The Omega 6 essential fatty acids along with triterpenes (organic compounds found in plants) deliver anti-inflammatory traits that can reduce redness or discomfort from skin conditions or even sunburn.
Using Shea Butter for Sensitive Skin
Shea Butter is a great choice for sensitive skin looking for a break. As mentioned, it can help with reducing inflammation and redness caused by conditions like eczema, or just generally reactive skin. As it fortifies the skin barrier, it promotes skin healing. Shea butter is also considered non-comedogenic, meaning that it’s unlikely to clog pores, ideal for providing intense moisture to acne-prone skin without congestion.
The fatty acids can also help balance oily skin, as pores produce excess oil to overcompensate for dryness. Shea butter’s fatty acids help regulate natural sebum production by providing hydration and thinning out excess oil on the surface of the skin.
Cocoa Butter vs Shea Butter
Compared to cocoa butter, another plant-based moisturizer rich in fatty acids, shea butter is more suitable for the face and for broader skin types. It has a softer, lighter consistency and is better for acne-prone skin due to its non-comedogenic properties. Cocoa butter is a better choice for body care as it’s slightly thicker and has a stronger natural scent.
Shea Butter Skin Care Products to Try
With moisture and barrier health cornerstones in K-Beauty, it’s no surprise that shea butter is a staple for Korean skin care routines. Here are some easy ways to work shea butter into your everyday regimen.
One of the more common ways to use this timeless ingredient is in a shea butter face cream like the Centella Phyto & 5 Peptide Concentrate Cream. Paired with soothing centella and a hydrating and anti-aging Peptide complex, the shea butter in this formula helps prevent water loss while smoothing skin texture. This cream has been clinically tested to show improvement in skin moisture by 41%+ after just 4 weeks of use and almost 30% improvement in the appearance of wrinkles in the same amount of time. It’s great for both night time routines and in the morning, as the squalene and caffeine brighten and de-puff.
Shea butter is a key ingredient in our Centella Sunflower Makeup-Melting Cleansing Balm. This melts away makeup, SPF, dirt and oil from the day while leaving the skin soft and hydrated. Cleansing balms are personally my favorite way to remove makeup, and this one feels gentle but gets everything off– even waterproof mascara! It never makes my skin feel stripped like other removal products, and actually nourishes my dry and sensitive skin while thoroughly removing impurities.
My new favorite way to use shea butter: on the lips with the haruharu wonder Rose PDRN Peptide Glowy Balm. This silky balm not only instantly floods my chronically dry lips with hydration, but they stay feeling hydrated longer thanks to shea butter’s barrier support. PDRN skin care is having a moment, and for good reason. It helps skin renewal, stimulates collagen production and can help improve texture. All of those benefits packed into a lip balm is chef’s kiss… literally!
Whether it’s a supporting ingredient or the main character in the formula, shea butter has been and always will be a holy grail *it* ingredient in our favorite skin care products.
Meet the Author
Miranda has been a trusted voice in the online beauty community since 2012, sharing her reviews, tips and tutorials on social media and her blog. Her expertise has earned her recognition as a repeat judge for the Glamour Beauty Awards and features in publications like Seventeen Magazine and Allure Magazine. Connect with her on Instagram.