Cocoa Butter Cream

Cocoa butter is a very unique natural product that has been used for hundreds of years. Also known as theobroma oil or theobroma cacao, it is light yellow in color and made from the cacao bean. Yes, the same cacao bean we use to make chocolate! Pure cocoa butter is an edible vegetable fat that has many uses in everyday life. It can be used to make chocolate, other baked goods, and create pharmaceuticals and general bathroom products. Most importantly...it is an effective remedy for stretch marks.

It is a by-product of the process used to obtain cocoa solids known as the Broma process. Developed in 1865, the Broma process is arguably the most widespread and best method for separating cocoa solids and cocoa butter. By hanging bags of ground cacao beans in a warm environment, the butter separates and drips away, leaving behind the cocoa solids that are then used to create cocoa powder. The butter is then collected and hardens into blocks at room temperature. It can then be shipped around the world to create many different products!

This process differs greatly from the products of the similar-looking shea butter cream, which is produced by hand by women in small African villages. In fact, the cacao tree grows in the lush tropical regions of the Americas, so they are produced on entirely different continents! Cocoa butter is most widely known for its use in chocolates and other sweets, but the use that we're all curious about is exactly how it is able to lighten and reduce the appearance of your stretch marks.

It acts as a moisturizer for your skin, and is so effective that it is actually able to reach lower levels of your skin. The top layer of your skin is known as the epidermis, and the one directly below it is known as the dermis. Stretch marks, also known as striae, occur at the dermis layer, so a powerful moisturizer is needed in order to reach and affect that layer of skin. Because stretch marks are slight tears in your dermis, there is no permanent cure for them. Forget about laser treatment or plastic surgery - it is much cheaper and more effective to use cocoa butter cream. It will make your stretch marks nearly 100% invisible.

For the purposes of stretch mark removal, raw cocoa butter is usually processed into a cocoa butter cream in order to increase it's effectiveness. An ingredient commonly added to cocoa butter creams is mineral oil. Mineral oil is used in many different types of cosmetics and beauty products, and helps with the application of the cream. Other common products are natural plant extracts like coconut oil and onion extract. The very best cocoa butter creams may cost a bit more than your average brand like Palmer's, but the extra ingredients and care that goes into the formulation of these products is well worth the money. Your stretch marks react much worseto cheaper, lower quality creams.