The benefits of Shea Butter for hair (especially in Winter!)

Throughout your hair and skincare journey, you’ve probably come across Shea Butter in one or more of your chosen products. Mainly because of its incredible moisturising properties. But what exactly is it? And what are its other main benefits?

Shea Butter is a fat extracted from the nuts of the shea trees. These trees are natively grown and sourced from Africa. It’s often thought of as a superfood for your skin (and as we know, your hair too). For centuries it has been used in the beauty industry as one of the best hydrating ingredients that also works well with other ingredients. Read on to find out more about Shea Butter’s other unique benefits.

Benefits of Shea Butter

1. Moisture

Shea Butter is packed with natural fatty acids and vitamins which help to hydrate and moisturise hair. These help to lock-in moisture once it’s been absorbed — without leaving hair feeling heavy or greasy.

2. Scalp health

Regularly massaging Shea Butter into your hair and scalp can help your hair retain and replace natural oils, in turn hydrating your hair. The massaging helps to stimulate your hair follicles which can promote growth. Plus, it’s also known to contain linoleic acid which can help calm down inflammation on the scalp.

3. Smoothing

Shea Butter also has smoothing properties — which helps with those pesky flyaways. Because of its texture, using products infused with the ingredient can help to coat your strands, leaving them looking and feeling smoother.

4. Protection

Shea Butter can also be used to protect hair from heat. This is because it is absorbed into your hair and creates a barrier around your strands that protects from heat penetration. It can also be used as a natural alternative to chemical heat protectors, and helps with UV protection (by creating that same barrier against the sun).

Our fave Shea Butter products

1. Shea Moisture Jamaican Black Castor Oil Strengthen & Restore Treatment Mask

Infused with Jamaican black castor oil, and of course Shea Butter, this mask repairs hair after the stress of chemical processing or heat styling. Leave it on for up to 30 minutes to restore elasticity, moisturise and strengthen hair — helping to prevent any further breakage.

2. Shea Moisture Raw Shea Butter Restorative Conditioner

Conditioner is often the first re-moisturising step after cleansing, so you want a good, rich conditioning product. Enriched with raw Shea Butter and olive oil, this conditioner is formulated to provide intense moisture and hydration. Best of all? You can use this as a rinse-out or leave-in conditioner.

3. Organics Repair & Care Shampoo & Conditioner

This moisturising shampoo and conditioner combo is enriched with Shea Butter to soothe and quench thirsty hair. Its intense moisturising formula helps to reinforce each strand, repairing your hair from damage caused by heat and chemical styling. Altogether leaving you with stronger, healthier looking hair.

4. Shea Moisture Coconut & Hibiscus Curl & Style Milk

This Curl & Style Milk is a unique styling product that also gives your hair some major care. It contains a nourishing blend of coconut oil, neem oil, carrot seed oil and certified organic Shea Butter. All which work together to gently detangle, hydrate, soften, protect and define your curls.