Shea butter: the 4 misconceptions on this essential natural product

Shea butter: 4 misconceptions about this essential natural product

It's an essential product: the benefits of this oil are well known to everyone. Used in masks and treatments, it's an excellent ingredient for hair, skin, and the face. But many misconceptions circulate about this product: in this article, we're committed to separating fact from fiction about this popular product.

1. Shea butter has an unpleasant smell

This is not always true: in fact, the smell it gives off depends on its production process. If its production steps are not properly followed, it may smell bad or give off a strong odor. Indeed, as is the case for fruits or vegetables, for example, if they are rotten, they will have a foul smell, and this also applies to this product. Strong odors therefore depend both on how the product is made and on its maturity. A quality product will rather have a nutty smell: in that case, it will be unnecessary to mask its scent with chemical solvents, a process that is frequently used for shampoos or creams based on this product, such as those you can find in stores.

2. It promotes acne

Here again, this is a rumor: raw shea butter is non-comedogenic, meaning it does not clog pores. By contrast, shea butter that has been refined and chemically altered will lose some of its benefits and may therefore be comedogenic. Hence the importance of checking the ingredients in skincare products based on this product, and reading labels carefully. But again, don't rely solely on the product information, because refined shea butter may sometimes be marketed with claims such as "pure shea butter" even though it has been refined. If you buy this product pure, and since it has a comedogenic rating of 0 on a scale of 0 to 5, you can apply it as a facial treatment without risk of unsightly breakouts.

This pure product is a friend to acne-prone skin, as it has anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties: it helps reduce redness and blemishes while nourishing your skin.

3. ORGANIC shea butter = raw

Be careful once again with preconceived notions. Organic does not necessarily mean quality. To make sure you're buying authentic raw shea butter, you'll need to check the color of the product, which should be more yellow for raw butter and whiter for refined butter. Then you can smell your product: if it has a strong smell, that's not a good sign. Raw shea butter will have a mild nutty scent.

4. It doesn't spread easily

This statement is both true and false. There are two types:

• The shea butter produced in West Africa: this is the classic and most common product. This variety is nicknamed "Vitellaria paradoxa". This variety is grainier and more difficult to spread on the skin
• The shea butter produced in East Africa: this one is less popular. This variety is nicknamed "Vitellaria nilotica". Vitellaria nilotica has a much smoother texture than Vitellaria paradoxa and is therefore more pleasant to apply.

Whatever variety of product you choose, the key is to prioritize quality: nothing beats raw shea butter for enjoying all its benefits, whether for hair, skin, or the face.

To help you choose the best products based on raw shea butter, we offer the Resilience Cosmos Organic hand and body cream from TerreDeMars. Enriched with raw shea butter, chamomile, and coffee extracts, this cream helps fragile skin regain its former elasticity and radiance.