Shea Butter Madness

[MochaMama]

Hi Ladies:

I need clarification on something and I know you all can help me.

I have heard or read of three types of butters (of African Origin):

West African Shea Butter

East African Shea Butter (Nilotica?)

Kpangnan Butter

What exactly is East African Shea Butter?

Thanks

[Jadryga]

Excerpt from http://www.treasuredlocks.com/eaafshbu.html

"East African Shea Butter is the crème de la crème of Shea Butters. Because it is extracted manually from the highest quality shea nuts of the Nilotica variety, East African Shea Butter is softer and more fragrant than shea butter of West African origin. East African Shea Butter is naturally high in shea olein, melting more gently into the skin.

East African Shea Butter is more rare than West African Shea Butter and is highly prized for it superior moisturizing properties, smooth creamy texture and mild fragrance. It's so smooth and creamy, you may find it hard to believe this is an all natural product."

On the other hand... this is from http://www.soapnaturally.org/shea.html

"Shea Butter has two distinct varieties. The West African Shea (Vitellaria paradoxa) and The East African (Vitellaria nilotica).

The East African Shea is lighter in color, has less healing properties, is more expensive, and has a tendency for turning rancid."

And finally... the two-sided argument... from http://store.africansheabuttercompany.com/eastvswest.html

"Which shea butter to buy narrows down more to personal preferance and lifestyle requirements. West African shea butter is thought to have more healing properites than the East. We have many customers with eczema or psoriasis who find significant help for their conditions when they use therapeutic West African shea butter. But customers have commented that the softer East African shea butter works wonders on diaper rashes. Not only does it help the skin to heal, but it is much more gentle to apply to delicate skins than the firmer West African variety. We have had some cocern from elderly individuals that the West African shea butter is too hard to spread on their fragile skin, another bonus point for spreadable East African shea butter. If your days are hectic and you have little time to pamper your skin you may also choose East African shea butter, which drastically cuts down on the time it takes to spread all over the body. For pregnant women who are more sensitive to scents, but want an unrefined shea butter, East African is always the butter of choice. East can be more oilier than West. West shea butter tends to absorb better on the feet and make them softer than East. There are many differences between East and West, but when making a decision between East or West, it comes down to what works best for you and your body. We think that having both East and West African shea butters on hand is the best option for keeping your skin glowing and healthy."

[Jadryga]

If I'm not wrong, the Kpangnan shea butter or golden shea butter isn't from the same fruit as the other two. There was a discussion about this some time back, I think.

[CareBear]

If I'm not wrong, the Kpangnan shea butter or golden shea butter isn't from the same fruit as the other two. There was a discussion about this some time back, I think.

Exactly - whole different animal, so to speak.

It also has quite a different texture. It's not tacky like I find shea, instead it leaves a sorta powdery feel, kinda like kokum would if it melted at skin temp! But it's much softer than kokum.

[MochaMama]

Excerpt from http://www.treasuredlocks.com/eaafshbu.html

"East African Shea Butter is the crème de la crème of Shea Butters. Because it is extracted manually from the highest quality shea nuts of the Nilotica variety, East African Shea Butter is softer and more fragrant than shea butter of West African origin. East African Shea Butter is naturally high in shea olein, melting more gently into the skin.

East African Shea Butter is more rare than West African Shea Butter and is highly prized for it superior moisturizing properties, smooth creamy texture and mild fragrance. It's so smooth and creamy, you may find it hard to believe this is an all natural product."

On the other hand... this is from http://www.soapnaturally.org/shea.html

"Shea Butter has two distinct varieties. The West African Shea (Vitellaria paradoxa) and The East African (Vitellaria nilotica).

The East African Shea is lighter in color, has less healing properties, is more expensive, and has a tendency for turning rancid."

And finally... the two-sided argument... from http://store.africansheabuttercompany.com/eastvswest.html

"Which shea butter to buy narrows down more to personal preferance and lifestyle requirements. West African shea butter is thought to have more healing properites than the East. We have many customers with eczema or psoriasis who find significant help for their conditions when they use therapeutic West African shea butter. But customers have commented that the softer East African shea butter works wonders on diaper rashes. Not only does it help the skin to heal, but it is much more gentle to apply to delicate skins than the firmer West African variety. We have had some cocern from elderly individuals that the West African shea butter is too hard to spread on their fragile skin, another bonus point for spreadable East African shea butter. If your days are hectic and you have little time to pamper your skin you may also choose East African shea butter, which drastically cuts down on the time it takes to spread all over the body. For pregnant women who are more sensitive to scents, but want an unrefined shea butter, East African is always the butter of choice. East can be more oilier than West. West shea butter tends to absorb better on the feet and make them softer than East. There are many differences between East and West, but when making a decision between East or West, it comes down to what works best for you and your body. We think that having both East and West African shea butters on hand is the best option for keeping your skin glowing and healthy."

Yes, I looked at these sources before. It seems like the first two cancel each other out and the third seems to imply that the two butters are just made from the same tree, but with either a different grade of nut or with different extraction methods. Thanks for the info!

I love the way the last sentence in the last paragraph is a plug for purchasing both types of shea butter. More $$$$ for them!