Shea Butter Uses

The shea tree grows naturally in Africa and produces the nuts from which shea butter is created. Vitamins A and E in shea butter help nourish the skin. You can use this creamy, beige butter all over your body for various conditions. Keep the butter at room temperature or in a cool environment. Hot temperatures cause the shea butter to melt just like any other butter.

Face

• Use shea butter on the face, especially on the lower portions of your nose, the corner of your lips, ears and forehead. It moisturizers and softens dry skin. It also may help to clear up dermatitis, eczema and dark spots. Apply shea butter to your face after a sunburn to stop your skin from peeling as badly. Men can use shea butter as a shaving cream to avoid shaving irritation. Also the vitamin E in the shea butter may even help get rid of wrinkles, though this use hasn't been proven. Use shea butter to heal chapped lips. However, WebMD warns that while shea butter is effective as a moisturizer, it can clog facial pores.

Hands and Feet

• Shea butter helps mend rough, flaky, cracked skin on your hands and feet. Before you apply the butter, soak your hands or feet in warm water for about 15 minutes. If your heels are cracked, use a bath stone on them. Change the warm water in your pail and add 1 teaspoon of shea butter to your new water. Soak for another 15 minutes. Dry off your hands or feet then apply shea butter directly to them. Repeat this ritual once or twice a week.

Body

• Not only can you use shea butter to moisturize dry skin on your arms, legs and torso, but you can also use it on healthy skin to prevent it from drying out. Women use it as shaving cream when shaving their legs or armpits. The American Shea Butter Institute contends that shea butter helps relieve tension and stress, so you can rub it on tired muscles or tense shoulders. Pregnant women often rub this butter on their expanding bellies to avoid the appearance of stretch marks.

Other Uses

• To help the itch, apply shea butter to skin rashes, such as poison ivy and poison oak, and insect bites. If you suffer from dry hair or dry scalp, try massaging shea butter into your scalp and hair. Apply to frostbite and skin damage caused by heat such as radiation treatments or hot grease. Rub shea butter into your skin after having hair waxed off your body to reduce irritation. Or use shea butter as a massaging oil to help soften your skin and relax your body.