subject: Unrefined Vs Refined Shea Butter [print this page] When you are going to purchase Shea butter, it is important that you be aware that there are two kinds of Shea butter products in the market: unrefined and refined. There are huge differences between these two so despite the fact that they are all products of Shea butter, do not assume that they all function the same way. Refined Shea butter is normally extracted by the use of chemicals mostly hexane that is relied upon in dissolving the Shea nuts to retain the butter. The butter is also taken through some filtering and meshing which is aimed at changing its color, scent and texture. However unrefined Shea butter is the complete opposite of refined Shea butter meaning that no chemicals are used to extract it and it does not pass through any filtering or meshing for it is left to retain its original form which includes the original color, scent and texture.
One of the facets that can help you distinguish between unrefined from refined Shea butter is the scent of the butter. Unrefined Shea butter often produces a nutty or earthy aroma that is quite unmistakable. However while some customers love this scent, others do not hence some manufacturers eliminate it during the extraction process as a way of attracting many more customers to purchase their Shea butter products. So depending on whether you want to purchase unrefined or refined Shea butter, the scent can guide you best in knowing which is which.
There are also some color differences between unrefined Shea butter and refined Shea butter. A good number of manufacturers dealing with Shea butter products normally want to give their customers a product that they can familiarize with and therefore for this reason they change the natural color of raw Shea butter which is usually grey or beige to white like common creams. There is really nothing much about the color only that it is assumed if the butter is kept white, many more customers will be willing to purchase it since they are used to white creams unlike the case if it is left in its original form. Consequently the color of Shea butter can additionally tell you if its unrefined or not.
The upside of ensuring that you buy unrefined Shea butter often lies with the fact that unrefined Shea butter has all the original healing properties of raw Shea butter. So weather you want to remove the scars on your skin, do away with stretch marks or simply get rid of the rashes on your skin; unrefined Shea butter will get the job done for you faster than refined Shea butter.
Nonetheless be ready to shell out a little more money when going for unrefined Shea butter as sellers are aware also of its superior functions to refined Shea butter hence sell it at a considerably higher price. But the good thing is it lasts longer because since it is pure and very effective, you only need to apply it in small portions on your skin and it will still produce excellent results.
