Tuesday, September 8, 2009

What is Shea Butter?

Shea Butter is only found in the tropics of Africa. It is extracted from the nuts of the Shea-Karite tree which begins to bear fruit after about 15 years; and can take up to 30 years to bear a quality crop of nuts with a high content of irremovable fatty acid. It is this irremovable fatty acid that gives Shea Butter its unique healing properties and makes it far superior to cocoa butter and other vegetable butters. Traditionally, Shea Butter was extracted by people who picked the nuts, cracked them, grilled them and pounded them. They were boiled in water for hours until the Shea Butter rose to the surface. It was then scooped into gourds and left to cool and set. Shea Butter is solid at room temperature although it quickly liquefies right around body temperature. This Shea Butter is called unrefined Shea Butter or raw Shea Butter. Since Shea Butter is an all natural product, it can vary widely in quality, appearance and smell depending on where it is produced from and how it is refined or extracted.


Benefits
Shea Butter has been used in parts of Africa for centuries as a staple in cooking. Tribes also use it to repel mosquitos, as well as healing burns and reducing scars. Women who harvest shea butter are known to have beautiful and flawless skin.
This incredible butter is known for its high healing and moisturizing capacity. Unequalled skin moisturizing
Clinically proven anti-aging properties
Stretch mark prevention and minimization
Protection against inflammations Rapid healing for burns (minimizes scarring) Enhanced cell regeneration and capillary circulation