The Shea tree is said to bear fruit once a year after about 15 years; and can take up to 30 years to bear a quality crop of nuts. It usually grows up to 60 feet and could live up to 200 years after. These trees grow in the wild and are not cultivated. The tree drops the ripe fruits which are picked and then dried in the sun to bring out the oils. The nuts in the centre of the fruits are then crushed or ground before being traditionally processed by roasting or boiling and kneading to extract the oil which congeals to form healthy multi-beneficial vegetable fat.
Traditionally before now, Shea butter was extracted by people who picked the nuts, cracked, grilled and pounded them. They were boiled in water for hours until the Shea butter rose to the surface. It was then scooped into gourds and left to cool and set. Shea butter is solid at room temperature although it quickly liquefies right around body temperature.
It has been in use in Africa for centuries as a cooking ingredient and made even more popular by the likes of Cleopatra as a major skin care element. This wonder plant is known for its amazing and 100% ability to renew, repair, and protect the skin against harsh climates like the harmattan. It was from this widespread use and its efficacy in beauty therapies as well as being a major income earner for housewives that it derived the name “Women’s Gold”.
For many users, the odour is offensive and so they seek to buy the already-reprocessed and packaged ones which are not only more expensive but have also lost most of their essential components. Like many other plants and food items, Shea butter is at its best when it’s unrefined and consumed in its natural state.
Aside from its undisputable reputation to protect, soften and heal the skin, wound and scars, it is also a superb remedy for rashes, particularly nappy rash on babies and toddlers. Also on minor burns and cuts, it works with a soothing effect.
In Ghana, it is an integral part of the lives of women in the northern region, Tamale precisely, so much so that they have set up an organisation involved in the extraction of the oil. Tung-Teiya Shea Butter Extraction Women’s Association (TUSEWA), Ghana has a membership that consists of 450 women whose processed Shea butter are amongst the over 90% of the products exported from Africa to the West.
According to experts, Shea butter contains irremovably fatty acids that give it its unique healing qualities and make it comparable and even superior to cocoa butter and other vegetable butters. Experts inform that most seed oils can be divided into two important fractions: (1) the first fraction is called the saponifiable fraction, which contains most of the moisturising (moisturising fraction); (2) the second fraction is called the nonsaponifiable fraction, which contains most of the healing properties (healing fraction).
What sets Shea butter apart from other seed oils is its exceptionally large healing fraction. The healing fraction contains important nutrients, vitamins and other valuable phytonutrients required for healing. Depending on the source, the size of the healing fraction may range from 5% and upward. Some report that the healing fraction is as high as 17%. The larger the healing fraction, the better the chances for good quality Shea butter.
From using the fat over time, one can tell from a variety of ways if it has gone rancid, has been diluted or is still in usable condition. Contaminated Shea butter or its substitutes are not likely to give you the results mentioned. At room temperature, premium Shea butter is a soft uniformly yellowy or beige or ivory-looking coloured creamy solid that readily melts in the hands and is quickly absorbed by the skin. When left in a hot room or near a heat source, Shea butter will readily melt like any oil. Even the heat produced from rubbing it against the palm is enough to make it melt.
From personal use and other testimonies, here is a list of cases in which Shea butter has proved to be a wonder greasing agent.
* Daily skin moisturiser (face and body)
* Dry skin relief
* Dry scalp
* Skin rash, including diaper rash
* Blemishes and wrinkles
* Itching skin due to dryness
* Sunburn
* Shaving cream to reduce razor irritation
* Small skin wounds
* Skin cracks
* Softens tough skin on feet (especially heels)
* Stretch mark prevention during pregnancy
* Minor burns
* Eczema
* Sun and wind protection
* Evens skin tone
* Reduces blemishes and scarring
* Eliminates scalp irritation from dryness or chemical processing
* Prevents bumps after shaving
*Reduces acne (especially in combination with black soap)
* Absorbs quickly without leaving a greasy residue
* Helps to restore elasticity to skin
* Restores lustre to hair
