Shea Butter For Beard Growth: So, you want to know everything about Shea butter and the benefits it has to offer to your beard and hair? You are definitely in the right place for that. Shea butter is very famous for its amazing beauty and healing remedies both for the skin and hair. But let us first dive into the benefits of Shea butter for your beard and hair, we should first go into an overview of what Shea butter really is, and how it is gotten and also where it is most common.
So what is Shea Butter exactly?
Shea butter is a yellow solid fat that is extracted from the African Shea tree’s nut. Shea butter is most commonly found in Africa and is used for several purposes including cooking, beauty and body massage. It is a Triglyceride derived from Oleic and Stearic acids. The Shea tree that Shea butter is derived from, is very common in West Africa as well as in other parts of Africa. Shea butter when rubbed on the body, melts. You will know this if you commonly use it as a body cream when it is in its raw and unprocessed form. The main focus of this article is to look at the many benefits of Shea butter for your beard and hair in general. It has lots of good use for your hair.
Benefits of Shea Butter for Beard Growth
1. Helps reduces razor bumps when shaving or styling your beard
When you are shaving your beard, the razors you use could cause razor bumps on the skin underneath your beard. This is not desirable at all, in fact, it can be downright irritating. Applying Shea butter on your beard and also on the skin before shaving will go a long way in reducing the number of razor bumps that could result. Shea butter significantly reduces bumps and even when there are already bumps on your skin, it also helps to heal the bumps faster. Because it has amazing healing properties.
2. Shea butter helps to repair damaged hair
Yes, it repairs hair generally whether it is for your beard or the hair on your scalp. If your hair has been damaged in any form, Shea Butter surely can help you out with this. What this means is that, the vitamins and nutrients that Shea Butter contains, help in revitalizing the follicles that have been damaged due to one reason or the other.
So if you feel your hair could have been damaged before, Shea butter can help you to repair the damaged follicles. And when the follicles have been repaired, then the hair will come out normal and healthy. Also damaged hair can be a result of using too many hair straighteners, perms and hair curlers which strip your hair and beard of its natural oils and moisture, which could leave the hair damaged and dry. But what Shea butter does is that it replenishes the lost moisture thereby making your hair soft and moisturized again.
3. Shea butter prevents hair loss
Shea butter also helps to prevent hair loss in the sense that it can prevent your hair from falling out especially if your follicles are not strong enough to hold hair. Essential vitamins and nutrients are necessary to help your follicles get stronger and thereby reduce the possibility of your hair falling out. Shea butter happens to be blessed with a lot of nutrients and vitamins that can help to do that for you. Shea butter helps to strengthen your hair strands and the follicles that hold them so that you experience lesser hair losses and your hair will stop falling out.
4. Provides relief from itchy scalp and beard itch
There are a number of reasons why you can have an itchy scalp. Maybe as a result of too much shaving which causes the bumps, or you’re just starting to grow out your beard. Itchy scalp and beard itch can also result in maybe when your hair is too dry or the skin under it is to dry.
What Shea butter does is that it replenishes all lost moisture and helps to moisturize your hair and not only your hair but the skin under your hair. So that it provides instant relief from itchy scalp and also beard itch. Then it can be as a result of beard dandruff or it could be because you’re just starting to grow out your beard. A lot of men in the initial phase of growing out their beards complain about the beard itch. But this is because the tip of the hair strand of your beard is still spiky and pointed. So as it grows out, it grows back into the skin and thereby scratches the surface of your skin and because it is spiky, then it itches. And so that is why people that are just growing out their beards experience beard itch a lot. But the good news is that you don’t have to do this. Shea butter can make it easier for you.
5. Repairs split ends and prevent hair breakage
Another benefit of shea butter is that it helps to repair split ends in your hair and beard. Split ends are not too good for the overall well-being of your hair and beard. Split ends can be trimmed off though, to avoid it spreading. But Shea butter is effective in repairing split ends.
6. Serves as a natural hair and beard conditioner
This is not surprising because Shea butter is the main ingredient of many of the beard conditioners and beard balms out there. Shea butter conditions your beard as well as softens it. It also does this for the hair on your scalp as well. All you need to do is get unrefined and natural shea butter, scoop it out with your finger and then rub between your palms and apply on your facial hair or the hair on your head.
You will see that immediately your hair will soften. This response that your hair gives you is a sign that it has been conditioned. Shea butter does the work of conditioning your beard excellently well. If you can’t afford to buy a quality beard conditioner or hair conditioner, you can definitely invest in a shea buttercream. It will do the work of a conditioner perfectly for you. You can also consider the fact that it is 100% vegan-friendly, purely organic and purely natural. Unlike some conditioning products out there that are not totally natural, organic and vegan. So Shea butter should be your pick when it comes to 100% natural conditioning products.
7. Shea butter helps to tame wild hairs and keep them in place
Another important benefit of Shea butter for your hair and beard is that it helps to keep stray hairs at bay. If you naturally have issues with your hair being too wild and rough, then Shea butter could help to hold your hair together and tame it, so that it looks organized and neat. Shea butter just like beard balms, hold stray strands of hair that don’t want to stay in a particular place. So, if you constantly find yourself holding your hair or your beard into place and you’ve been looking for a product that could help to hold those stray and wild hairs into place, then Shea butter is for you.
Just get one, preferably an unrefined shea butter, then scoop into your palm and rub your palms together and then apply on your beard or hair and then within minutes, you will see significant improvement.
8. Serves as a beard/hair softener as well as a moisturizer
Now this one is an obvious one. Even by the feel of Shea butter on your hands, you can tell that it will instantly soften your hair or beard once it gets into it. I guess that’s why the name ‘Butter’ is attached to its name.
So when the Shea butter gets into your hair or beard, it immediately softens it. Because of its strong moisturizing properties, it helps to lock in moisture into your hair and beard and thereby softens it. Moisture is key to softening and because Shea butter is a great moisturizing agent, it, therefore, results in your hair being immediately softened.
9. Perfect for moisturizing of Skin under your beard
Apart from moisturizing the hair itself, Shea butter also moisturizes the skin that carries the follicles that give birth to the hair. Without the skin, there will be no hair and because of this, you have to take care of your skin first in order to ensure rapid growth and healthy growth of hair.
So it helps to protect your skin, moisturize it and provide it with minerals and vitamins that it needs to produce healthy hair. So, if the skin under your beard or hair is not left neglected when the skin is well taken care of, it can help to ward off skin infections, dandruff, and itch. Shea butter is very, very good for your skin in general.
10. A key and irreplaceable ingredient in beard balms
For many of the beard balms out there, Shea butter is a very major ingredient that makes up these beard balms. Shea butter together with some other important oils and butter are the key ingredients for many beard balms. Shea butter plays a key role in nourishing, softening and conditioning your beard just like a beard balm does.
11. Protect Hair from harmful ultraviolet rays and pollutants
I am certainly sure that you are aware that UV rays from the sun can be very harmful to the growth of your hair and beard. Well, shea butter is there to the rescue. It shields your hair and the skin under it from harmful UV rays by blocking the rays from entering into your beard and hair and thereby preventing hair damage.
12. Contains very essential and important vitamins
Important vitamins like vitamins A, E and D are very well in abundance in Shea butter.
13. Contains natural anti-inflammatory ingredients
14. Improves the overall look of your beard and hair making it look cool
Where do I get shea butter for Beard?
If this is the question you are asking, then Shea butter is not scarce to get, we should just start with that. There are a number of places you can get Shea butter from. You can buy online from famous online stores that are available in your country. For example, if you live in the US, you can shop for your Shea butter products on Amazon or at Walmart. If you live in Nigeria, you can shop for your Shea butter products online. Jumia, Konga and some other online shopping malls are online stores available in Nigeria.
Buying Shea butter only depends on your location. In Nigeria for instance, you can get Shea butter especially the unrefined ones in your local market. In a typical Lagos market, if you ask around with the traders, they will be able to direct you to another trader who deals in selling Shea butter which is known in Nigeria commonly as Ori.
So you can buy Shea butter through popular online stores operating in your country or in a market, a drug store, a pharmacy or any local store around you.
What are the best Shea butter brands available for you on Amazon?
1. Unrefined Shea butter by Better Shea Butter
This is the highest-rated Shea butter product on Amazon. It costs $15.25 and has over 6,000 reviews. Their butter is from Ghana in West Africa.
Very good quality. I suggest you transfer some of it to a smaller container so you can use it raw very easily. If you use it raw you can expect to smell the natural product more. I recommend that you melt and mix with other carrier oils and essential oils to make a salve/lotion. If you melt and mix with your favorite oils it will be softer like butter. I usually let it sit in the freezer for about 15 minutes and then I whip it with a hand blender. If you add a good quality lavender essential oil the aroma will be more pleasant. However, raw is good too!
I would highly recommend this product.
Click here to by Unrefined Shea butter on Amazon.
2. African Shea butter by R.A Cosmetics
This is a must have for all types of race, skin type and especially for children. I grew up using sheabutter and Vaseline and all I can say is my skin looks very defined and acne free. Apply twice for the face and you’ll thank me later.
This costs $10 on Amazon. To buy, click here on Amazon.
Factors To Consider when shopping for Shea butter for Beard
Look for unrefined and purely natural Shea butter. Usually, unrefined Shea butter has the color Yellow or Ivory. When Shea butter is white, it is an indication that it has been refined. The unrefined ones are best for you.
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Wonderful Tips on Storage of Shea Butter
Shea butter can be stored in a variety of containers, from a zip-lock plastic bag to a plastic container with a lid, to a container or glass jar. What medium of storage used does not really count, it should be stored away from direct heat. Make sure it is not left close to a sunny window, heating elements such as pressing oil or cake baker.
Frequently Asked Questions and Answers
How To know Shea Butter Has Expired?
- Rancid smell
- Smokey Smell
Rancid Smell:
Have you perceived olive oil or food that has gone bad? It makes you gag right? When a shea butter has gotten spoilt that is the exact odor it will emanate. Toss it away!
Smokey smell:
This is a brunt smell that is close to one of burn wood or barbecue. The level of the smell of each refined shea butter varies but detectable.
Why Is My Shea Butter Gritty?
She butter turning gritty or grainy is what can be experienced with refined and unrefined shea butter. Gritty shea butter is a result of temperature, kinds of butter have their own respective melting points. Shea butter melting point having been the lowest at room temperature can easily melt.
Does Heating Shea Butter Damage It?
The elements or nutrients present in some organic substances can be destroyed with heat, including shea butter as it makes it get oxidized and rancid faster than it should be. Heating shea butter can destroy some important nutrients BUT if you do it rightly, then it will be unaffected.
Can I Refrigerate Shea Butter?
Do not refrigerate shea butter as they meant not be too hard and cold.
Can Shea Butter Expire?
It takes 12-24 months for shea butter is raw and unrefined to go bad.
Conclusion on Shea Butter for beard
Shea butter is very nourishing to hair and beard although it has a few side effects, it is still the best hair moisturizing ingredient and balm for your beard that nature has ever given humanity.