Shea butter: two kinds

[akevita2002]

Hmmm...After I got my shea butter and wasn't pleased very much with the effects, I did some research and came to this video on youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9XzMd2AJu8 where the lady explains that shea butter is the ivory colored one and african butter is the yellowish one. I think she also sais from where they are extracted, I can't recall and now I can't watch the video. Of course, what I purchased was yellow, so it's not shea butter actually.

Are these the 2 types of 'shea butter', or there is african butter and 2 types of shea butter?

[Idun]

I know there is something called Kpangan butter that is sometimes sold as "golden shea butter".

ETA: I think that is what she is talking about in the video. It is not shea at all, but a different butter from a different tree.

ETA: more info on Kpangan butter from the same site.

ETA:
Kpangnan Butter
Although often referred to as golden shea, it is quite different. A unique characteristic of kpangnan is the unexpected high fraction of stigmasterol, which is an unsaturated plant sterol usually found in plant fats like calabar bean, soybean oil, rape seed and cocoa butter. Stigmasterol is used as a starting material in the manufacture of synthetic progesterone but has other interesting properties as well. Some research shows stigmasterol can lower the risk of certain cancers, including ovarian cancer. Extracts of stigmasterol have also been found to be effective topical anti-inflammatory agents. Kpangnan is a bright, clear yellow with a smooth feel and adds silkiness to creams and lotions.

ETA: What is the difference between shea butter & kpangnan?

[ktani]

Here is more information on Pentadesma butyracea Sab "Common names English: butter; butter tree; tallow; tallow tree; candle tree; candle butter tree; black mango tree. Air-dried seeds carry 32–42% of solid fat which can be extracted by pounding and cooking. It varies from pale to dark brown, is almost tasteless and has a pleasant smell. It is edible and resembles to some extent shea butter (Vitellaria paradoxa Gaertn., Sapotaceae), and has the advantage of being free from any bitter latex, and it does not turn rancid. It is used for cooking and is made into unguent for skin and hair; .... Composition is: 53.6% oleic acid, 45.2% stearic acid, 1.2% palmitic acid, with an assortment of ammo acids."
http://www.aluka.org/action/showMeta...s=&cookieSet=1

Interesting shea butter website on the 2 varieties
"... two main varieties of Shea Nut called Vitellaria Paradoxa and Vitellaria Nilotica. Vitellaria Paradoxa is produced in West Africa where as Vitellaria Nilotica is produced only in Northern Uganda and Southern Sudan. Unfortunately these areas (Northern Uganda and Southern Sudan), both are currently states of civil unrest and so generally this variety is not available in the market. ... Shea butter Uganda has some significant advantages over the common variety [ The West African Shea Butter (Vitellaria Paradoxa)] in composition and applications like SHEA BUTTER UGANDA is very soft in texture and it melts very smoothly on the body of human being where as the other variety west African shea butter, has to be rubbed with hand to create frictional heat, and melt it first, before applying on the body."
http://www.sheabutteruganda.com/aboutsheabutter.htm

"Application Of Shea Butter Uganda
... best recommendation is to apply a day before shampooing your hair. Apply shea butter on to the scalp and massage it nicely for 5 to 10 minutes only. Wrap your hair in warm towel for 10 to 15 minutes and wash them with soap or shampoos with warm water. If you shampoo your hair next day you get the best results. Now dry your hair and after 10 to 15 minutes again apply shea butter on to the hair to bring brightness and life to it. Hair will be very soft and silky. Application of shea butter on to the scalp also reduces dandruff and enhances natural, healthy growth."
http://www.sheabutteruganda.com/application.htm

This is from 2002
"Market and Technical Survey: Shea Nuts
Supply
Shea nut supply far outstrips demand. Over 600,000 MTs of the dominant variety, Vitellaria paradoxa, is produced in West Africa ... Most is used as a cooking oil or as a butter for the skin and hair locally. The other variety, Vitellaria nilotica, has a superior quality which is preferred by the cosmetics firms (see excerpts from a shea nut technical report produced by Fintrac in Annex A). Unfortunately this variety is primarily grown and processed in northern Uganda and southern Sudan, both currently states of civil unrest, and so it is generally unavailable on the market."
http://www.unctad.org/infocomm/franc...ocs/world3.pdf

From 2010
"PHYSICO-CHEMICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF SHEA BUTTER (Vitellaria paradoxa C.F. Gaertn.) OIL FROM THE SHEA DISTRICTS OF UGANDA
The eastern sub species Vitellaria paradoxa sp. nilotica occurs in Ethiopia, Southern Sudan and Uganda ..."
http://www.ajfand.net/Issue31/PDFs/Okullo3340.pdf

[virgo75]

Interesting. I didn't know there where two different kinds. I got unrefined Ghana Shea butter a while ago, & I was really turned off by the latex/rubber band smell. Even though I mixed it with coconut oil & EO's, it was just terrible.

I've bought shea butter(both yellow and off white) repeatedly hoping for some miracle, but the smell is just.....

I guess it is kind of rubber band(y), but there's also some sort of orange smell in a way? Either way penetrates through any other scent it's paired with and makes me sick. Thankfully, it doesn't seem to do much for me so I guess I can stop trying now.

Edited to add: I think the scent of shea butter is part of the reason why I can't use AO Honeysuckle Rose. Even though it's highly fragranced, all I can smell is shea butter and it makes me feel dizzy and sick.

[ktani]

I've bought shea butter(both yellow and off white) repeatedly hoping for some miracle, but the smell is just.....

I guess it is kind of rubber band(y), but there's also some sort of orange smell in a way? Either way penetrates through any other scent it's paired with and makes me sick. Thankfully, it doesn't seem to do much for me so I guess I can stop trying now.

Edited to add: I think the scent of shea butter is part of the reason why I can't use AO Honeysuckle Rose. Even though it's highly fragranced, all I can smell is shea butter and it makes me feel dizzy and sick.

That is both the interesting and frustrating thing with plants/trees/herbs. There are always varieties and different species, common name confusion and differences in characteristics and constituents to some degree or a large degree. Search under the latin name of a species, to get a truer picture of what one is about.

[melikai]

Interesting! I didn't know there were two different kinds of shea butter. I purchased some a while back which said it was unrefined, but was confused because it was very pale coloured and softer than the unrefined shea butter I'd been used to. Now I know that it's the Nilotica one!

[Idun]

Thank you for all the info ktani!

I´m looking forward to trying shea, but I am worried about the smell. Beeing really sensitive to smells I hope I won´t hate it too much! I hate using coconut oil for this reason. Glad I ordered the kind that is supposed to have less odour.

It seems from what I read that paradoxa shea is more varied in quality than the nilotica. There is a larger production and many different suppliers, and the properties of the shea varies a lot after which region it´s produced.

Kind of funny and interesting piece that talks about contamination and the trade (it´s from 2005 though): Shea Butter - What-all is the big deal?

[Idun]

Interesting! I didn't know there were two different kinds of shea butter. I purchased some a while back which said it was unrefined, but was confused because it was very pale coloured and softer than the unrefined shea butter I'd been used to. Now I know that it's the Nilotica one!

Did you notice any other differences between the two types, I mean other than the texture and colour?

[Gulbahar]

Interesting! I didn't know there were two different kinds of shea butter. I purchased some a while back which said it was unrefined, but was confused because it was very pale coloured and softer than the unrefined shea butter I'd been used to. Now I know that it's the Nilotica one!

I wouldn't be too sure about that. Shea nilotica is much more expensive than the other one and it would be bad marketing not to point out that a product contains this unusual, exotic type of shea.
The colour and texture even within the western shea varies quite a bit. From almost white to greyish to yellowish - everything possible depending on the region and the way of extracting the butter.

[rach]

Didn't know there were two types. I find in my mix the melting points can be annoying at times but i find it alone too heavy to put on alone.

my favorite mix is -
2 part Aubrey Organic HoneySuckle Rose conditioner
1 part shea butter
1 part coconut oil (which give the mixture some movement)

Which makes a light cream mixture after i put it in the food blender.

which was inspired from the foxes shea butter thread which i appear to be failing to find on the search tool
my hair absorbs it butifully and makes it really silky feeling and i live on this mixture

Alone shea butter is also great for the skin too