Shea Butter: The Butter That's Good For You

Shea Butter is one of those ingredients that have become so common in beauty products that we sometimes take it for granted. But what is Shea Butter? And where does it come from?

Shea Butter is an ivory to slightly yellowish colored natural fat taken from the seed of the fruit from Shea trees. Shea trees grow naturally throughout the

savannah belt of Africa, from Senegal to Ethiopia.

Its many beneficial properties range from healing dry skin, dark spots, discoloration and chapped lips, to minimizing stretch marks and wrinkles. It is also known for its anti-inflammatory properties, which make for effective treatment of scars, burns, rashes, eczema, acne, and blemishes.

Shea butter restores smoothness, softness, and shine to hair and skin by retaining moisture and promoting cell grow. Unlike some body care ingredients, Shea butter melts at body temperature and is quickly absorbed by the skin, so it doesn’t leave that dreaded greasy feeling.

Shea butter can be found in soaps, hair care products, moisturizers, and lip balms. How many of your skin, hair, and body care products contain Shea butter? Probably more than you realize!

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Don't Let Winter Keep You Dry

Dry skin is a major concern for both men and women during the fall and winter. It’s easy to neglect our body’s largest organ, especially during the end of one year and the beginning of a new, not to mention the typically strenuous holiday season. While finding time to prevent and alleviate sickness becomes a number one priority for most people, following these simple steps can help keep skin hydrated with minimal time, effort, and money!

1. Shower with warm water. Hot water strips the natural oils and proteins from our skin that are produced to help lock in moisture -- there’s a reason we use hot water to remove oil from dirty dishes! If you’re like me and forgoing a hot shower each morning is simply not an option, try alternating between hot and warm showers.

2. Skip the bubble-bath. Despite being an easy, at-home way to pamper yourself, bubble-baths can further irritate dry skin. Instead, use oatmeal powder or bath oils, which help retain skin’s moisture.

3. Pat dry. Buck the tendency to rub yourself dry after showering. Instead, gently pat your body until it is damp so that it is ready for the next step…

4. Moisturize! To get the “moist” out of your moisturizer, apply it when your body is still damp (get it? “most - moist”?) This is the toughest step because, honestly, who has time to moisturize every day? If you’re lucky enough to have the time and discipline to moisturize daily, do it when your skin is still damp to help maximize the effectiveness of the lotion/cream. Also, you don’t need to buy a different moisturizer just for the winter; simply using petroleum jelly or any vegetable oil will do!

5. Turn down the heat, and/or use a humidifier.

Bonus: If you’re in need of a time-saving technique that still gets the job done, try putting baby oil in a spray bottle and spraying your body with it before patting dry.

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