Description

Cocoa Butter Is a Naturally-Occurring Moisturizer for Dry Skin

Cocoa butter comes from the cacao bean, which is found inside the cocoa pod, which grows on the cacao tree. The cocoa pod is a large, gourd-shaped fruit; inside the pod are 30 to 40 cocoa seeds. After these seeds are dried, roasted, and pressed, the vegetable fat is extracted from the beans— you can even do it at home if you want. That fat is what we know as cocoa “butter,” and what’s leftover can be ground down to become cocoa powder. “Cocoa butter is an amazing moisturizer, as it’s rife with fatty acids.

It’s also rich in antioxidants, Solid at room temperature, cocoa butter has a low melting point and a super-long shelf life of around two to five years. That means a tub of the good stuff can go a long way in caring for your skin.

If you’re out searching, you’ll find cocoa butter in two forms: refined or unrefined. Creamy yellow, unrefined cocoa butter is simply cocoa butter in its rawest form. It’s easy to find, and all of the above-mentioned skincare benefits naturally come with the unrefined product. However, it smells pretty strongly of chocolate, which can be divisive. Some cosmetics manufacturers prefer not to use it because it masks the scents of the fragrances they add.

Refining cocoa butter strips away the scent and color, making it easier to incorporate into cosmetic recipes without standing out—so when you buy a pre-made cocoa butter product, you’re usually getting a version of refined cocoa butter. Purists claim that processing dilutes some of the beneficial properties of cocoa butter, but we find it’s a preference thing. Plus, pre-made products often have other nutrients cocoa butter might not provide alone.

Benefits of Cocoa Butter for Dry Skin

• It’s an antioxidant powerhouse: Cocoa butter is high in antioxidants, which help fight off free-radical damage, which can cause skin aging, dark patches, and dull skin.1 Protecting your skin from free-radical damage is crucial to keep it healthy and youthful-looking. Cocoa butter is also an anti-inflammatory—just another way it helps your skin withstand the passage of time.
• It reduces stretch marks and scars: Many women claim that the regular use of cocoa butter kept stretch marks at bay both during and after pregnancy. Now, those claims are anecdotal, but you will find a ton of anti-stretch mark cocoa butter products to choose from. In fact, Palmers, a skincare line devoted to cocoa butter, offers a product just for stretch marks. Similarly, the ingredient is reputed to help heal scars.
• It’s a rich moisturizer: Cocoa butter is high in fatty acids and hydrates the skin deeply, making it a wonderful addition to body moisturizers and lip balms. It contains oleic, palmitic, and stearic acids, all of which nourish the skin.
• It heals sensitive skin: Again, no guarantees, but cocoa butter has been noted by some to help skin irritations such as eczema and dermatitis.