Shea Butter Benefits and Uses for Skin, Hair, Baby Care & More.

You all know I’m a fan of using coconut oil and olive oil on skin and hair, but another all-star natural moisturizer around the home is pure shea butter. Something about the name just even sounds luxurious, doesn’t it?

Whether or not you have dry skin like me, you’ll love shea butter’s benefits. It can bring oily and combination skin types back into balance too. (My teens love it for this reason.)

This luxurious butter is very thick and solid at room temperature but has a buttery, rich consistency that makes it ideal to use as a natural eye cream, lip balm, or body butter.

Thanks to other unique properties, shea butter does more than moisturize and hydrate. It delivers vital health benefits like being anti-inflammatory and transporting anti-aging fatty acids right into the skin.

Many recommend it for sunburns or dark spots. It’s especially great for sensitive skin. There are so many shea butter benefits and uses!

So what exactly is it?

What Is Shea Butter?

Shea butter is a fat produced from the seeds and kernels of the shea (Karite) tree. The shea tree is native to West Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa. Its butter has been used internally and externally for centuries across the continent to soothe the skin.

This ancient African remedy is off-white and solid at room temperature, but it doesn’t leave your skin too greasy.

This skin superfood has been used in Africa and many other places for years to improve skin and hair. It also has a long history of medicinal use, such as in wound care and even treating leprosy.

While cocoa butter is hard at body temperature and coconut oil is liquid, shea butter is in between them as it starts to melt at body temperature when you touch it. This unique quality makes it easier to handle, cut, and measure than other moisturizers.

I love how it quickly absorbs, so it doesn’t stain clothes.

Shea tree butter has a strong, nutty, kind of earthy honey smell, likely from the cinnamic acid when you open the lid. (Don’t worry, you won’t feel like you smell like shea nuts for the rest of the day after using it.

Shea Butter Benefits for Health

So what are the benefits of raw shea butter?

Shea butter is more than just a nice lotion or butter for dry skin. It is nutrient-rich and may help with some skin conditions when part of a healthy lifestyle.

Moisturizes – The concentration of natural vitamins and fatty acids in shea butter makes it incredibly nourishing and moisturizing for the skin. It remedies dry skin and helps protect the skin’s natural oils.
Reduces Inflammation – Due to its cinnamic acid and other natural properties, shea butter is anti-inflammatory. One compound, in particular, lupeol cinnamate, reduces skin inflammation and even potentially helps prevent skin mutations. Its anti-inflammatory properties make it beneficial for acne.
Smoothes Skin – Shea aids in natural collagen production and nourishes the skin to prevent drying. With long-term use, many people report skin softening and strengthening as well as wrinkle reduction.
Penetrates Skin – Many studies show that it is especially good at penetrating the skin and contains 60% fat, making it highly emollient (similar to how almond and jojoba oil polish the skin.) It’s high in essential fatty acids, which help build the skin barrier.
Provides Essential Fatty Acids – What makes shea butter unique is the fatty acid profile. In addition to cinnamic acid, shea contains oleic, stearic, linoleic, palmitic, arachidic, and linolenic acid. Together, these make it the perfect boost for cellular energy and regeneration.
Gives UV Protection – It may offer mild UV protection, up to SPF ~6.
Supplies Vitamins A and E – High in these nutrients, the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties on the skin may also help with dermatitis and psoriasis.

Reduces Joint Pain – A 2016 study found that it relieves the symptoms of osteoarthritis in rats and protects cartilage from destruction and degeneration.

More good news: it’s great to use on kids and babies too! A 2015 pediatric study demonstrated an eczema cream with shea butter to perform just as well as the standard ceramide products. In addition, it had a high compliance rate which means that the kids didn’t mind using it.

I’ve only ever used it externally. Ask a doctor or dermatologist before using, especially if you or your family have any underlying skin conditions.

Additionally, those with nut allergies should avoid or check with an allergist. Heating it does not remove the allergic risk.not tried it, but if you have, let me know in the comments!) I’ve even seen it in some chocolate recipes.

There are differing opinions on whether or not it’s healthy to eat. Since some studies suggest that ingesting shea butter may interfere with the digestion of other proteins, I use it externally only.

There are so many other uses for it externally. You can use shea alone or easily combined with other natural care products and ingredients.

Shea butter is one of the most versatile natural beauty ingredients, and I use it daily in some form. For years, I’ve used it in everything from my homemade lotion bars and original magnesium body butter to homemade lip balms and healing salves.

It has many hydrating benefits, and not just for the skin! You’ll also find shea butter in many hair products.

Shea Butter for Hair

Unless you have thick beautiful curls, pure shea butter by itself will weigh down your hair, but it’s lovely mixed into natural hair care. You won’t see it as the first ingredient—it’s usually further down. Sometimes, ingredients list it as “Butyrospermum Parkii” with shea in parentheses.

For years, I searched for a natural shampoo and conditioner that actually worked without having harsh or toxic ingredients. When I could not find it, I made my own skin and hair care line, Wellness.

Shea butter works well on both the hair and scalp. That’s why we use it as one of the main ingredients in my Wellnesse Curly Conditioner.

It helps seal cuticles for healthy and bouncy curls. It may help prevent breakage due to its high fatty acid content and mild UV protection.

If you struggle with dandruff, shea may help your scalp.

Shea Butter for Skin

I also love to use shea on my skin, both by itself and combined with other ingredients. It’s so easy to add to my skincare routine. Even though it feels thick, it melts right into my skin when I rub it.

So what does shea butter do for skin? Some of my favorite skincare uses are:

By itself for face and body as a natural moisturizer
Before sun or beach exposure to replenish skin
After sunburns to hydrate the skin
To ward off stretch marks

As a natural nail and cuticle cream
To plump up the delicate tissue and fine lines around the eyes
On sore and raw noses during a cold or flu
On scars to naturally help collagen production (I used it on my c-section scar!)
By itself for low-grade sun protection

To soothe dry and cracked feet and hands
As a natural baby-care product
By itself on the lips
On the eyelids before applying makeup to make it last longer
To improve skin elasticity (some even say it helps with cellulite)
To lighten skin and reduce dark spots
As a method to reduce acne blemishes and acne scars
To prevent insect bites

In addition to using it by itself, it works well in many DIY personal care recipes.

e applying makeup to make it last longer
To improve skin elasticity (some even say it helps with cellulite)
To lighten skin and reduce dark spots
As a method to reduce acne blemishes and acne scars
To prevent insect bites

In addition to using it by itself, it works well in many DIY personal care recipes.

DIY Recipes

In my homemade products, I like to mix shea with essential oils. I use it to help with dryness and anti-aging in all of these DIY recipes:

In a lotion bar stick for easy use
In a pregnancy salve for stretch marks
As the best under-eye wrinkle remover and bag remover
In my homemade velvety soft whipped body butter

Whipped into a magnesium body butter
As a massage butter
In homemade liquid creme foundation and makeup
As a base for homemade deodorant
Added to homemade lotion
As an ingredient in baby care recipes
In a homemade shimmer lip balm

You can also emulsify it with other oils using the technique in my lotion recipe to get the most health benefits out of it.

What Kind Is Better?

There is a vast variation in the quality of shea butter, depending on the manufacturer and source. A 2010 study found that Eastern African shea tree nuts had significantly higher fat and oleic acid contents than Western countries. On the other hand, Western African shea butter is higher in stearic acid.

If you’ve tried shea butter before and haven’t liked it, try a different brand or check the expiration date. Shea butter may go rancid after 2-3 years, especially if it’s been exposed to heat or sunlight.