We’re always looking for the best skin care products on the market. We need something that cleans, tones, de-oils, and moisturizes at the same time. While you can’t find everything in just the one product, there are some skin care items that will offer as many of the benefits as possible. They will also offer additional benefits.
African black soap is just one of those products. It includes shea butter as one of the active ingredients and is used by people all over the world. It’s one of the best options for those with dry skin conditions or those with irritable skin.
But exactly what can African black soap offer for your skin? Here’s a look at 6 top skin care benefits you’ll gain immediately.
What Is African Black Soap
If you haven’t heard about African black soap before, you’ll want to know what all the hype is about. This soap is commonly called black soap, but it can also be referred to as Dudu-osun or anago soap. Either way, they all offer the same benefits to your skin and your health.
The black soap comes from the ash of barks and plants that are local to the African nations. They include shea tree bark, cocoa pods, plantain, and palm tree leaves. The barks and plants are all sun dried and then roasted in a pot or kettle. The aim is to keep the temperature constant to make sure the soap comes out with the right coloring and smell.
Oils and water are then added to the first ingredients, creating a liquid product that can be fully mixed and stirred. It takes a day to mix everything and get the right texture fully. The soap then takes two weeks to set and cure.
Each type of black soap you get will have slightly different recipes. Tribes have created their own, and some of them can come out slightly different to the traditional dark black. You won’t get a list of all the ingredients, due to “secret recipes” but most of soaps are completely natural. You will need to check where they’ve been manufactured and created.
When you come to buy African black soap make sure you look for fair trade options. Most of the black soap is made under fair trade conditions, usually around Ghana and other West African nations. However, there are a few companies that act unethically. Also look out for those that are created in the United States and Europe. They may include some unnatural ingredients.
It’s a Moisturising Soap
Very few soaps out there will moisturise your skin. This is one that does, due to the shea butter that’s included in the ingredients. Shea butter is one of the best ingredients for deeply moisturizing the skin. It will get deep into the pores and offers to moisturize every single layer.
This is beneficial for those with dry and oily skin.
Since the skin is moisturized, the body won’t need to produce extra oils. This is a problem for those with oily skin, which leads to the greasy looking skin.
For dry skin, the moisturizing element repairs the damage by dry skin conditions. There is less irritation and rashes aren’t as common.
Other skin conditions can also be treated. Those with eczema and psoriasis can see some reversal on the skin, as all the layers are deeply nourished with the shea butter.
While there are plenty of other products that will moisturize the skin, the shea butter offers another major benefit: it doesn’t clog the pores. There’s no need to worry about bacteria growth within the pores, leading to acne.
Shea butter also helps to eliminate “razor bumps.” These are the annoying bumps that tell everyone you’ve shaved your legs. The shea butter gets into the pores and helps to repair any damage to the skin caused by the razor.
Offers a Little UV Protection
Using African black soap doesn’t mean you can go out without any sunscreen at all, but there is the benefit of some UV protection. It’s an added layer of your usual sunscreen.
Why is this important for your health? Well, UV rays cause damage to the skin. UVA leads to cancer and aging damage, while UVB leads to burning (and tanning if you’ve got the right skin type). You need to look after your skin from both throughout the year.
If you’re just nipping to the store for a couple of things, you could get away with no sunscreen—but do think about the time that you will be in the sun.
There are also antioxidant benefits that can help to offer some protection from sun damage. We’ll get this more to the next point.
Helps to Heal the Skin Fully
If you have signs of aging, you want to stock up on some African black soap. It is full of antioxidants (including vitamins A and E) through natural ingredients. You help to fight off the free radicals in your skin that lead to blemishes, dry skin, and cancer.
The antioxidants will help to support the skin cells. Rather than being damaged, the cells will regenerate and repair. You will see fewer physical issues. In fact, you may be able to reverse the skin discolouration and dark spots.
There are also reports that black soap helps to improve the toning of the skin. It works on improving the texture, so you have glowing, youthful skin naturally. All this is without increasing the natural oil production that makes your skin look greasy.
When your skin is firmer, there are few fine lines and wrinkles that form on your skin. Healthier skin will also see more collagen production. This is essential for improving the elasticity of the skin, avoiding scarring and stretch marks from forming. It can help to minimize the looks of scars, further healing the skin.
While cleaning there is also no stripping of the natural oils. This is something that far too many skin care products do to help clean out the pores. The soap encourages the natural production at a healthy level, keeping your skin moisturized and soft always. This is important for the healing process. Your skin needs moisture to repair scars or to reduce blemishes.
Likewise, it can help to heal eczema, psoriasis and other skin conditions. This is all thanks to the moisturizing benefits that we’ve already looked at.
The barks used to create the soap have healing properties. They are traditionally used on their own to heal cuts. When used in the soap, they can help to heal all types of wounds and cuts on your body.
It Gently Exfoliates the Skin
Many people look for a treatment that will help to get rid of dead skin cells. This is the best way to bring out your natural glow. The problem is there are a lot of harsh treatments out there. They add toxins into your body, or they are too harsh for the skin on your face.
That’s not the case with African black soap. The skin care product exfoliates the skin gently but effectively. It will remove all the dirt and grime from the pores, pulling out the bacteria and getting rid of the dead cells.
Thanks to the shea butter you end up with a softer feel to the skin. You’ll feel like your skin has been cleaned but without drying everything out. By fully unclogging the pores, you reduce the chances of an acne breakout.
There are many people who will use African black soap as a makeup remover. It’s excellent for sensitive skin and doesn’t aggravate existing skin conditions.
None of the ingredients in the soap will affect the skin. Everything is natural, which even liquid castile soap can’t offer. You don’t add any toxins to the body, which reduces that chance of rashes and skin flare-ups. This is especially beneficial if you need an exfoliating product for sensitive skin.
Helps to Eliminate Acne Breakout
We’ve already looked at how black soap is good for cleansing the skin. It certainly gets into the pores and unclogs them. By doing this, it’s possible to remove all the bacteria and dirt that could lead to more acne breakouts in the future.
However, it’s not just the unclogging that helps to eliminate breakouts. The soap also contains plantain extract. This is full of antibacterial properties. Not only are you eliminating the dirt and drawing out existing bacteria, but you’re preventing more bacteria from growing and forming. The soap helps to kill it off. More info on folliculitis antibacterial soap here.
The antibacterial properties are natural. This means no toxins are getting into your body, creating hormonal imbalances. You won’t see an increased production of natural oils because of the change in your hormones. At the same time, bacteria haven’t gained a resistance from natural antibacterial properties.
There are also antifungal properties within the soap. This is another benefit of reducing the risk of acne. You can get rid of the yeast and other fungi growing in your skin, leading to various skin problems like blackheads and acne.
Lastly, there are anti-inflammatory benefits. Inflammation in the skin is a problem for acne breakouts, healing, and irritation. By getting rid of the inflammation within your skin, you get rid of all the side effects. You can do this completely naturally, reducing the risk of inflammation and flare-ups once the African black soap has worn off.
Helps to Reduce Scarring
I’ve mentioned this benefit a couple of times, but it’s something that is worth covering on its own. After all, we’d love to get rid of our scars, right?
I need to be more specific, though. The soap is effective for fading acne scars. These scars are lighter and affect fewer layers of skin. They take less time to remove completely.
The benefit comes from the shea butter, offering to moisturize the skin deeply. As the skin becomes more hydrated, the collagen production increases.This helps to improve the elasticity of the skin to help cover up the scarring.
At the same time, the ingredients help to lighten the skin. The ingredients lighten the scars too, so they start to disappear within the lighter skin. Unlike other herbal remedies for skin lightening, it’s not dangerous if you go out in the sun afterward. The shea butter has some UV protection. However, you should still use some sunscreen if you are going out.
Another way that it helps to remove acne scars is by reducing the inflammation. This helps to remove the irritation from the acne in the first place, so you’re not as likely to pick at it. You can prevent the scars from even forming. Of course, by eliminating acne, you also see the benefits of no acne scars.
Finally, you get the benefits of exfoliating. Flaky, dead skin cells are removed from the skin. Remember that it’s the top layers that have the scarring. When you get rid of these drier layers, you get rid of the scarred layers.
Improve Your Skin with African Black Soap
Black soap is extremely popular in the herbal world. It’s made naturally and offers a range of health and skin benefits. One of the biggest benefits is the hydration. This is the soap that won’t dry out your skin. While it doesn’t add in extra oils, it doesn’t strip the skin of oils either. This is important, especially if you have some dry skin or other conditions.
Make sure you use it daily for the best results. Using it on a night before you will help to get rid of all the impurities from the day. The antibacterial and antifungal benefits get seep into your pores to help eliminate blackheads and acne. You can also help to repair any damage due to environmental toxins throughout the night.
It’s time to improve the look of your skin. If you have eczema, psoriasis, or other dry skin conditions, you will want to look at black soap for your beauty routine.
