A popular skin care trend not only in West Africa, but also around the world, is shea butter. In West Africa, in particular, shea butter means big business. West Africa is a huge producer of Shea (600,000 tons according to USAID) – and its an industry mostly dominated by women! Over 2 million women throughout countries like Ghana and Burkina Faso harvest Shea off trees in the wild for profit.
Many know the benefits of Shea Butter as a deep moisturizer and as relief for itchy skin, but there are so many other uses for Shea Butter that make it versatile! When the body is trying to heal itself it requires a lot of vitamins and nutrients, many of which are present in Shea Butter, such as Vitamin A and Vitamin E. Vitamin A helps with reducing a number of different skin blemishes while Vitamin E helps increase circulation in the skin giving a more healthy, youthful appearance.
Here are five benefits of Shea Butter you may not have known before:
1. Alleviate muscle aches and fatigue
2. Sooth damage from mild burns
3. Protect small scrapes and scratches
4. Relieve discomfort from insect bites
5. Can be applied to blemishes to help them heal faster
If the science behind the healing benefits of Shea Butter interests you, read this study here.
Words to Know:
Versatile = (adjective) having or capable of many uses
Blemish = (noun) a mark that detracts from appearance, as a pimple or scar
Relieve = (verb) to ease or alleviate
Image Credit: DaveYNin
