Kokum Butter Benefits for the Skin and Hair

Kokum butter is an alternative to cocoa and shea butter for helping regenerate and moisturize your skin and hair.

The various kokum butter benefits make it a powerful choice for anyone wanting to look and feel better.

In this post, we take a look at kokum butter itself and how it compares to common choices.

Kokum butter is made from the seeds of the Garcinia indica tree, which is often simply known as kokum. The tree is native to India and is part of the mangosteen family. Like mangosteen, the kokum fruit offers many health benefits. The site Fitness-Spell discusses these in more detail.

Because the butter comes from the seeds of the tree, the benefits are different but equally appealing. Unlike cocoa butter, kokum butter is for external use only. It is common in cosmetic products and with good reason.

Kokum butter itself tends to look strange. It crumbles easily and has a powdery surface – not what you’d expect for moisturizing at all.

The butter is harder than most other natural butters. This makes it more difficult to use directly but kokum butter is very powerful in homemade products. For example, it is commonly used as a thickener in body butters and in lotions. 

Despite the hardness, kokum butter does melt on skin contact. This allows you to apply it directly with a little effort.

• Reduces skin dryness
• Non-greasy, making it perfect for moisturizing and for the scalp
• Quickly absorbs into the skin
• Doesn’t make the skin feel greasy
• Moisturizes the skin
• Promotes skin cell regeneration
• Helps to heal cracks and ulcers, especially on the lips and the feet
• Is non-comedogenic, so it won’t clog your pores
• Can be used as a conditioner to make your hair softer
• Makes the skin softer
• Promotes skin flexibility and elasticity
• Can be used to treat dandruff, dry hair and split ends
• Uniform triglyceride composition
• Contains garcinol, which has antibacterial effects
• Is stable, with a shelf life of up to 2 years

Fatty Acid Composition

Kokum butter is high in stearic acid. This is responsible for many of the observed benefits, including skin firming. The moisturizing comes from the oleic acid content. The general composition is as follows, although exact numbers vary from batch to batch.

• Stearic Acid: 40-65%
• Oleic Acid: 30-50%
• Palmitic Acid: 5-8%
• Linoleic Acid: 2-4%

In contrast, the composition of other butter types is as follows:

These differences mean that kokum butter looks and behaves differently than cocoa butter, shea butter and mango butter. It tends to be firmer and melts at around 90°F to 104°F, although it will melt on skin contact too.

Kokum butter is also a drier butter. It absorbs into the skin faster and is less greasy as a result.

Where to Buy Kokum Butter

By far, Amazon is the best place to find kokum butter. They offer the widest selection and are incredibly easy to use. I recommend the following choices:

• 1 lb Raw Kokum Butter (refined) – from Halal Everyday
• 8 oz Raw Organic Kokum Butter – from Dr. Adorable
• 4 oz Kokum Butter Organic Raw (refined) – from H&B Oils Center Co.
• Unrefined & Natural Ayurveda Quality Kokum Butter – from Export Chef

Products That Use Kokum Butter

Kokum butter is often used as an ingredient, like in the following products.

• Burt’s Bees Ultra Conditioning Lip Balm with Kokum Butter
• Tata Harper Refining Body Balm
  

You can take advantage of kokum butter’s properties in handmade products as well. The recipes below are some examples.

• Soft & Silky Whipped Body Butter – from One Essential Community
• Favorite Homemade Body Butter – from The Herbal Academy
• Kokum Butter Salve – from Sustain, Create and Flow
• Kokum Butter Lotion Bar – from Renee Tougas
• Skin Smoothing Kokum Butter Face Cream – from Fresh-Picked Beauty

Kokum butter is very powerful when mixed with other ingredients. It helps create textures and outcomes that you wouldn’t get otherwise.

Final Thoughts

Kokum butter is less common and harder to find than mango, shea or cocoa butter.

But, its benefits and properties make it powerful for your skin and hair. The butter is very relevant if you want something that doesn’t clog your pores and has no scent. Try it out today!

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