Shea butter is the quintessential African beauty secret. For nearly 2000 years, from head to toe, it has been used by African women to care for and sublimate hair and skin (face and body).
In recent years, following the introduction of cosmetics containing shea butter on the European market, this African beauty secret has gained unprecedented popularity and managed to establish itself worldwide.
Today, this vegetable fat/oil is considered one of the best natural moisturizing and healing raw materials for skin, hair and scalp.
All this you already know!
If you're here, it's more to discover all the benefits of shea butter for the face. Well, without further ado here are 8 reasons why you should make shea butter your new face treatment!
1. Shea butter for a deeply moisturized face
Shea butter helps to deeply moisturize and revitalize dry skin. It's a natural humectant, meaning it attracts moisture from the environment and traps it in your skin's top layer to keep it supple.
It's also packed with essential fatty acids, such as linoleic acid and palmitic acid two components that ensure the balance of our skin's hydrolipidic film, in other words shea butter keeps skin optimally hydrated!
And who says deep hydration says radiant face!
2. Shea butter for a soothed face
The anti-inflammatory properties of shea butter combined with vitamins A and E work very well to soothe itchy, inflamed skin. Therefore, the application of a facial moisturizer with shea butter as one of the main ingredients rids the skin of skin irritation and unsightly redness.
3. Shea butter for an acne-free face
Although shea butter has a thick texture and a very high fat content, it's rated zero on the comedogenic scale (it doesn't clog pores). Consequently, this also makes it an excellent moisturizer for oily and acne-prone skin.
In addition, due to the presence of plant-derived compounds such as oleic and linoleic acids, it has excellent healing and regenerative properties, making it an excellent choice for treating active acne and preventing its recurrence.
Shea butter has also proved useful for relieving eczema and psoriasis, thanks to its composition rich in vitamins and fatty acids (the chemical compounds that help maintain healthy cells).
So if you want to take care of your skin and have a radiant face, shea butter is exactly what you need!
4. Shea butter to protect your face from external aggressions
Shea butter is a natural sunscreen. The vitamin E in shea butter helps protect against harmful UV sun rays by absorbing them before they damage skin cells. It has an SPF~6 rating and is rich in cinnamic acid, a substance that offers the skin extra protection against UVA and UVB rays.
The sun can increase freckles and age spots, but shea butter can reverse the effects of sun exposure thanks to its ability to erase these little imperfections by improving your skin's tone and color.
But not only that!
It's rich in unsaponifiables. These are compounds that help protect the skin and especially the face from external aggressors: pollution, stress, UV rays, etc. They also make your complexion less sensitive and more resistant to stress factors (cold, heat, sun...).
5. Shea butter for a soft face (even after waxing)
The nourishing and soothing properties of shea butter help calm your skin from the irritation generated by waxing and ensure it's super smooth and soft in no time.
Shea butter is therefore a real ally before and after epilation, especially if you have sensitive skin. It will restore a smooth appearance to your face and soothe razor burn or irritation that may have occurred during hair removal.
However, a small dab of butter is enough, so you don't need to use a lot to reap the benefits.
*You can apply the butter in a thin layer to your skin before waxing, and feel free to reapply afterwards.
6. Shea butter for a youthful, wrinkle-free face
Shea butter is an excellent natural moisturizer. It also promotes collagen production to help plump skin, helping to reduce fine lines and wrinkles.
If you're looking for a natural anti-aging remedy, you should really consider using shea butter as a face mask. Its high emollient content helps reduce dehydration and increases collagen and elastin production in the skin. When used as a moisturizer, it plumps up your skin over time and reduces fine lines and wrinkles.
In addition, thanks to its cell renewal properties, shea butter helps prevent and delay premature signs of aging.
7. Shea butter for soft, moisturized lips
Chapped, dry lips are not only annoying, they also make you look unattractive. They can be caused by exposure to the sun, cold, wind, low humidity, hormonal changes, allergies or vitamin deficiencies.
As shea butter is an excellent source of ingredients with moisturizing and nourishing properties, it heals chapped and dry lips very quickly. It provides your lips with extra nutrients, and its light texture is neither greasy nor sticky.
Shea butter is therefore a particularly effective lip balm for the cold winter months due to its humectant properties, which prevent moisture loss from the delicate skin of your lips.
8. Shea butter is an excellent face care product for its exceptional components
Raw shea butter is a vegetable oil with a high proportion of unsaponifiable components. This means that its molecules do not dissolve in water. Here's a closer look at the benefits of each of its components:
- Allantoin has an anti-inflammatory, healing and cell-regenerating effect. It is excellent for treating skin irritations.
- Linoleic acid ensures skin moisture balance, is anti-inflammatory and strengthens the skin barrier. It also acts against impurities and hyperpigmentation.
- Beta-carotene is an important antioxidant. It protects the skin from free radicals and prevents skin aging.
- Like beta-carotene, vitamin E naturally has an antioxidant effect. It's an effective cell protection vitamin, which can smooth wrinkles and improve skin elasticity.
- Palmitic acid is a saturated fatty acid that regulates the moisture balance of skin and hair and has a regenerating effect.
- Oleic acid creates a feeling of soft, well-cared-for skin. It has a high vitamin content and is well tolerated.
