Shea Butter is currently available in an organic, unrefined form and refined form. Despite both being 100 % Shea Butter, the difference lies in the Shea Butter extraction methods.

The way Shea Butter is produced, affects Shea Butter grade and quality. Post-processing factors like storage and temperature i.e. how to heat Shea Butter can also reduce its quality.

The refined Shea Butter has no natural fragrance and natural color. On the other hand, the organic, unrefined form of Shea Butter is in its natural state. Research has concluded that the refined form of Shea Butter is not as effective as the organic, unrefined one.

Major Uses

The primary use of pure sheabutter is as a moisturizer and as an emollient. Many products carry Shea Butter but not pure sheabutter due to its expensive cost. Many cosmetics mix other ingredients to the Shea Butter to cut expenses. 100% pure Shea Butter has been found to be very effective in fading scars and stretch marks. This in itself is one reason why so many women buy 100% Shea Butter. Other benefits of Shea Butter are keeping the skin elastic and supple.

Raw Shea Butter in shampoos and conditioners also help brittle hair regain its softness and elasticity. It can revitalize and prevent further breakage of the hair. 100% Shea Butter is also used for tribal ceremonies in Africa where the trees are common. Other uses for raw and pure Shea Butter are as cooking oil and conditioner for leather and wood.

100% Shea Butter is claimed to have anti-inflammatory properties, and has a reputation of helping lessen irritation from psoriasis, rashes and other skin disorders.

The Cost

The unrefined version of 100% Shea Butter is more expensive than the refined version. This is because organic products take more time to process and produce compared to those products that are refined and process without any regard for safety. The price for 100% Shea Butter usually depends on the demand and the supply of the product.

The uniqueness of the product means that it will always have a high demand and lesser supply since it takes seasons to grow the nuts and prepare the cream.

Pure Shea Butter

The primary use for organic Shea Butter is for moisturizing and emollients. As Shea Butter food, it is still used in Africa as cooking oil and for tribal ceremonies. Many communities in Africa depend on the Shea Butter trade to support them and their tribes.

Cosmetic use of whipped Shea Butter has prompted the production of more raw Shea Butter. The demand for it is great enough that sometimes manufacturers of the cream mix in other ingredients and elements to offset the cost and make the Shea Butter more than what they have.

These additives or fragrances are simply there to add to the amount of Shea Butter but not all additives are useful or needed. 100% pure Unrefined Sheabutter does not need additives to work well and properly on people.

Two Kinds Of Shea Butter

There are two primary forms of Shea Butter, the refined and unrefined. Refined Shea Butter is the form of butter that has gone through chemical processing. The procedure strips away the natural Shea Butter color and aroma of the pure Shea Butter.

Most of the time, not only the aroma and color of the Shea Butter cream is taken away but also the natural healing properties are stripped off. Many people prefer the processed Shea Butter because sometimes the aroma can be strong and earthy.

Compared to unrefined Shea Butter, refined Shea Butter goes through a chemical process that exposes the product to dangerous chemical such as hexane. Hexane is a derivative from petroleum that can bring harm to our skin.

Hexane is commonly used to refine Sheabutter hence the alarm of some people as compounds of this harmful chemical can be left in the refined Shea Butter.

On the other hand, unrefined Sheabutter is always guaranteed to contain the natural properties that many people are looking for. Among these properties are being able to heal superficial wounds quickly and also soothe sunburn and other skin disorders.

Unrefined raw Shea Butter still has a lot of its medicinal and healing properties since it has not undergone processing which is supposed to strip these away.

Using unrefined Shea Butter is much more advantageous than using refined Shea Butter.