Cocoa Butter, yummy

Cocoa butter is one of the most stable fats known, containing natural antioxidants that prevent rancidity and give it a storage life of two to five years, making it a good choice for non-food products. The smooth texture, sweet fragrance and emollient property make it a popular ingredient in cosmetics and skin care products, such as soaps and lotions.

This solid and rich butter is often found as an additive to cosmetics and shampoos , but it is also a natural emollient making it ideal for lip balms. The moisturizing abilities of it are frequently recommended for prevention of stretch marks in pregnant women, treatment of chapped skin, and as a daily moisturizer to prevent dry, itchy skin. The fact that it has a natural preservative and has a faintly pleasant aroma further lends benefits to its cosmetic uses.

Though many believe that this exceptional tropical butter has the ability to reduce or diminish the appearance of scars, this is a theory that is yet unproven. It does however, promote elasticity in the skin and will aid in the healing of chapped skin if it is used regularly. This tropical butter is often mistakenly used by people to expedite a suntan and while it will enhance a natural tan, it does not have a sun protection factor (SPF). To prevent the harmful effects of the sun, use a suntan lotion with an SPF of at least 15 that contains cocoa butter.

I add cocoa butter to my shaving soap bars to add extra moisturizing during the shaving process. I also make a body butter with this and shea butter which was very easily absorbed and popular with sun bathers and tanning booth users. This butter by itself will leave quite a shine on your skin, so often skin care products have other butters and oils to lessen this shine factor.

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