Oh, my love-hate relationship with the internet. It extols the miraculous end-all, be-all, cure-all that is shea butter. It vows, vigorously, that coconut oil can cure acne, cure wrinkles, cure warts and, even maybe cancer! Can the internet ever be wrong?
Sometimes, the internet gets it wrong.
It’s so important to check sources. It’s so important to search the opposite of wondrous, bordering on ecstatic, claims. It’s important and healthy to think critically and skeptically.
Thinking skeptically doesn’t mean automatically discounting everything that you hear or read. That’s the other extreme and it’s not healthy either.
Thinking skeptically means not taking a total stranger at their word. It means expecting experience or expertise given to back up claims. It means actively doing additional digging instead of passively accepting strangers’ opinions as gospel truth.
Take shea butter. Used as an ingredient in many skincare products, shea butter is claimed by some to be totally non-comedogenic. Therefore, the theory goes that it will not clog pores and cause acne.
Not necessarily. I’ve seen shea butter breakouts. I’ve had shea butter breakouts myself. My professional and personal opinion is that many faces can handle shea butter and many can’t. It’s great on the body. I’m comfortable with people using it there.
The same goes for coconut oil. Claims range from curing acne to curing cancer and everything in between. Apparently, coconut oil can do everything except your taxes!
Not necessarily. I’ve seen coconut oil breakouts. I’ve had coconut oil breakouts. My professional and personal opinion is that some faces can handle coconut oil and many can’t. Go ahead and use it on your body. I’m comfortable with people using it there. That, and apparently it’s great if you’re frying fish. 😉
So, if your face is dry and you want to put some shea butter or coconut oil on it because you’ve heard great things, by all means, give that a try. Exercise your healthy skepticism and critical thinking. Watch for impacted pores, itching, redness or tingling. If you don’t experience any of that and you look and feel fantastic, that’s great! That’s exactly what I want for you.
Cherise