Shea Butter Benefits Dependent On Grade Quality Of Products, Research Shows

Shea butter is a great moisturizer, but what most people don’t know is that depending on the quality of the product, it also has some great medicinal properties for the skin.

Raw unrefined shea butter from Ghana. Photo from eCrater.com.

What’s considered Grade A shea butter contains a high level of healing nutrients including Vitamins A (maintains healthy bones, skin, and other tissues), Vitamin E (protects against cell damage), and cinnamates (absorb UVB).

The American Shea Butter Institute, which specializes on the research, education, and quality testing, highlights that “Vitamin A in (high grade) shea butter is important for improving a number of skin conditions, including blemishes, wrinkles, eczema, and dermatitis.”

Premium shea butter cream also has properties that treat skin allergies, insect bites, sunburns, frostbites, and a number of other conditions, and the moisturizers in shea butter are the same moisturizers produced by the sebaceous glands in the skin.

In nature, shea butter comes from the fat extracted from the nut of the shea tree. The healing properties depend on the grade quality of the shea butter after processing.

“In recent decades, shea butter has become a valued ingredient in the finest natural cosmetics, and even small amounts in a formulation can earn a prominent display on the label.

“The cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries consume an estimated 2,000 to 8,000 tons of shea butter each year, and this figure is expected to rise with growing demand in new markets,” according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations.

A big issue in the value of a shea butter product is its grade quality, which depends largely on how it’s processed and stored for consumer use.

“Product quality of both the shea nuts and shea butter depends primarily on the post-harvest processing, such as parboiling of shea nuts at the start of the season to prevent the seeds from germinating and drying them more quickly. Sun-drying of shea nuts provides better quality than smoking nuts over a fire, which contaminates them with hydrocarbons,” explains the FAO.

Making shea butter in Zoosali, Ghana. Photo by Ruth Leavett.

The issue is the lack of consistency in quality. There is currently no set standardized method for processing shea butter. The American Shea Butter Institute explains that, “Shea butter is refined to remove among other things, odor, color, and other undesirables.

“Unfortunately, the refining process (often) removes not only the odor and color, but also the important bioactive nutrients. The refining process leaves a snow-white shea butter, without an odor, and often with a marked reduction in bioactive nutrients.”

The institute also finds that, “During the refining process, up to 75 percent or more of the bioactive ingredients can be lost. The amount and degree of refining will determine the amount of bioactive ingredients lost; therefore, you can expect ultra-refined shea butter to have the least amount of nutrients.”

It’s important to do your research before buying a product. It should be a warming sign if a shea butter product contains an artificial fragrance.

The American Shea Butter Institute says that, “Fresh premium Grade A shea butter needs no added scent or fragrance. In order to get shea butter that is not rancid, you must purchase certified premium Grade A shea butter. Once fragrance is added, it is difficult to differentiate rancid Grade D shea butter from higher grades.

“Unrefined shea butter that has not been tested may contain any number of undesirable or harmful agents. These include: yeast, fungus, coliform bacteria, lead, and mercury. Harmful and undesirable agents can present a problem for the end user, in particular those with broken or irritable skin.”

Another area to be cautious of is the color of the shea butter that you buy. The institute says that, “The true color of natural unrefined shea butter ranges from ivory to faint yellow to faintly green to beige. Do not confuse ivory shea butter with snow white shea butter. Shea butter that is snow white is refined shea butter.

“There is an African butter available in the Unites States that is heavy yellow, called river butter. This is not shea butter and should not be confused with shea butter. Finally, some add various coloring agents to their butter in an attempt to mask adulteration.”

The institute also warns that consumers should, “Never buy shea butter that has not been tested for safety. Testing shea butter is voluntary. Neither the government not any other agency requires shea butter to be tested for quality and safety prior to selling.

“Because the large majority of shea butter consumers are not aware of the dangers hidden in unrefined shea butter, they tend to buy shea butter that is not tested because it is less expensive, Therefore, many unscrupulous distributors refuse to test their butter so long as consumers buy and use untested shea butter.”

Another consideration in purchasing shea butter is to always make sure that there is an expiration date on the label. Shea butter does go bad. The institute says, “We recommend that shea butter is used within 18 months from the date of extraction from the seed.” Adding that, “The best shea butter for skin use is prepared by cold press methods, without the use of added chemicals or preservatives.”

Reader comments and input are always welcomed!

Comments

[Jont]

A very nicely written article. I like the image showing an example of it actually being made.

[Kyriaki (Sandy) Venetis]

Thanks for your comment. I'm glad you liked the article!

Kyriaki (Sandy) Venetis
Writer/Publisher
GreenVitals