The Story Behind Shea Moisture
The story behind Shea Moisture dates back to 1912 when Sofi Tucker, a pioneering mother of four and entrepreneur, began selling shea butter, African black soap, and homemade beauty preparations in Sierra Leone. Today, the brand honors Sofi’s vision by continuing to formulate with raw shea butter handcrafted by women in Africa. In this review, we’ll focus on one of the brand’s most popular products: Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer. We’ll cover the key ingredients, how to use this moisturizer, review from real customers, and more.
What is Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer?
Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer is formulated to help your skin combat irritants such as pollution, free radicals, and acne-causing bacteria. It is a soothing cream that contains key ingredients like matcha green tea, shea butter, probiotics, and a natural green colorant to neutralize and color-correct the look of redness. It is said to leave skin feeling calm and comfortable with a matte finish.
What Are The Key Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer Ingredients?
Like all Shea Moisture skin care products, the Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer contains raw shea butter as one of the key ingredients. Shea butter contains the following fatty acids: oleic acid (40 to 60%), stearic acid (20 to 50%), linoleic acid (3 to 11%), palmitic acid (2 to 9%), and arachidic acid (less than 1%). The rich supply of triglycerides and fatty acids in shea butter help to replenish the skin’s natural barrier function. Shea butter functions as an emollient that works to soften and soothe the skin. Since shea butter melts at body temperature, it is able to coat the skin and form an occlusive film. This film helps to prevent evaporation of the skin’s natural moisture and increases skin hydration by causing buildup of water in the stratum corneum (the uppermost layer of skin).
In fact, research indicates that shea butter is superior to mineral oil at preventing transepidermal water loss (TEWL). In a test where participants’ arms were washed in water containing ethanol (a drying alcohol that disrupts the skin barrier), researchers found that shea butter was able to help the skin totally recover from TEWL within two hours. After three to four hours, shea butter improved the skin barrier to pre-treatment levels. With the mineral oil, there was a slower recovery and starting values were not recovered.
Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer also contains a high concentration of sunflower seed oil. Sunflower seed oil is mostly composed of unsaturated fatty acids, including oleic acid and linoleic acid. Oleic acid is an omega-9 monounsaturated fatty acid that functions as a penetration enhancer by disturbing the skin barrier. Linoleic acid is an omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA). Unfortunately, PUFAs are very unstable and prone to oxidation, which means they easily go rancid and can lead to the generation of free radicals that can damage our cells and lead to signs of aging.
One of the soothing ingredients in Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer is matcha green tea. Green tea is a rich source of epigallocatechin gallate, or EGCG, a type of polyphenol that is widely regarded as one of the most powerful antioxidants available. EGCG targets free radicals, particularly those caused by UV-induced oxidative damage. According to a publication in the journal Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces, “Catechin molecules such as epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) are capable of attenuating the biomolecular damage induced by UV radiation, possibly through molecular mechanisms involving the cell membranes.” Lastly, EGCG in green tea is also anti-inflammatory, which means it can help to reduce skin redness and irritation.
Another key ingredient in the Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer is Silybum marianum fruit extract, also known as milk thistle. Milk thistle provides skin-soothing, restorative, and antioxidant effects, primarily due to silymarin. Milk thistle functions as an antioxidant by helping the skin to combat free radicals, the unstable molecules that contribute to the formation of premature wrinkles and fine lines on the skin. Therefore, milk thistle may be able to help prevent the formation of dark spots, wrinkles, lines, and discoloration.
Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer includes a mix of different pre- and probiotics in its formula. Prebiotics and probiotics work synergistically to balance the skin’s microbiome. The microbiome is a population of many types of bacteria (over 10,000 different species) that are both good and bad. When there’s more bad bacteria than good, skin conditions like acne, sensitive skin, and bumpy, uneven skin texture can develop. Thus, keeping the microbiome balanced is critical in maintaining healthy skin. The probiotics in Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer include various strains of helpful bacteria that collaborate with your skin to restore the microbiome.
The final key ingredient in Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer is chromium oxide greens, a natural colorant that can help disguise redness. Green is opposite the color wheel from red, so it’s perfect for hiding any redness on your face, like blemishes, acne scars, and rosacea. However, this effect is temporary and will disappear when the product is washed off.
How to Use Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer
After cleansing and toning, apply a moderate amount of Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer, starting with areas of redness.
Where is Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer Sold?
Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer is sold on the brand’s website, as well as several third party online retailers, such as Target, Walmart, Ulta, Amazon, and more.
What is The Shea Moisture Return Policy?
Shea Moisture does not allow you to return their products if you are not satisfied. The return policy states, “Once an order has shipped, we do not accept returns or exchanges.”
Is Shea Moisture Cruelty Free?
Shea Moisture is certified cruelty-free by PETA’s Beauty Without Bunnies Program. They do not test on animals during product development or production—or allow any third parties to do so with their products.
Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer Reviews
Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer reviews on the brand’s website are a mix of positive and negative, with the product receiving an average rating of 4.2 out of 5 stars at the time of writing this review.
Positive reviews for the Shea Moisture Color Correcting Moisturizer mention that it really does help to hide redness and uneven skin tone. For example, one review says, “I LOVE this moisturizer! I have a lot of red splotches on my sensitive skin and this product has saved me. Also I photograph and show up on zoom MUCH more evenly. I feel more put together with this on, and I love the way it cares for my skin. I rotate it with the hemp moisturizer when I wont be out in public or on screen.”
However, there are a handful of negative reviews from customers who experienced breakouts after using this product. For example, one review says, “I was so excited to try this but it broke me out all over my face with tiny little bumps. I had to quit using this and all the bumps went away.” And another review says, “It reduces the redness but my acne became worse after the use of this cream.”
References:
1. Cosmetics Design “Moisturising Power of Shea Butter Highlighted by Scientific Studies
2. Colloids Surf B Biointerfaces 2019 Jan 1;173:312-319.
