Why Shea Butter?
If you’ve ever spent any kind of time looking at skincare or beauty products, you’re probably familiar with an ingredient called Shea butter—but how much do you really know about what it is, where it comes from, and why it’s so widely used?
We’ll start with the where: Shea butter gets its name from the shea tree, which is found throughout Africa; these trees bear nuts, and it is from those nuts that Shea butter products are made. Shea butter is plentiful throughout West Africa, and it’s a key natural resource right here in our part of Ghana.
Shea Butter 101
So that’s where Shea butter comes from, and how it gets its name—but what is Shea butter, exactly? Well, like we said, it’s made from a particular nut; if you ever see raw Shea butter, it will look like a fatty off-white extract, and you may find it being used throughout Africa as a food additive.
Though it’s perfectly edible and not at all bad, Shea butter isn’t widely seen as a food in North America—but it is embraced as a key ingredient in cosmetics. Shea butter is often used as a moisturizer, salve, or lotion. In some instances, it is even used as an ingredient in medicated ointments.
The Benefits of Shea Butter
It’s widely used because it’s widely beneficial, something the Shea Institute makes plain. The basic reason for this is that Shea butter is heavy on Vitamin A, as well as other natural moisturizers. What that means is that Shea butter can be useful in the treatment of:
- Blemishes
- Skin allergies
- Dermatitis
- Eczema
- Insect bites
- Frostbite
- Sunburns
- And more.
One More Reason to Use Shea Butter
The bottom line is that Shea butter products are good for your skin—but there’s another reason why we encourage you to buy Shea butter products. Many of them are made right here in our community—and when you buy your Shea butter products directly from Father's House Ghana, you play an active role in supporting our ongoing mission in Ghana.
You can keep up with the latest product offerings in our Shop. We have a range of 100 percent all-natural skincare products and lip balms—all of them made from unrefined Shea butter, and in a variety of sizes—to the folks who want to support us, but also to get a great, locally-sourced cosmetic product to remember us by!
We hope you’ll consider supporting Father's House Ghana through this unique opportunity—and take full advantage of Shea butter’s myriad benefits, in the process!