Cocoa Butter

Cocoa Butter is an excellent multi-tasker!

• An antioxidant powerhouse: Cocoa butter is high in antioxidants, which help fight off free-radical damage to the skin. Free radicals can cause skin aging, dark patches, and dull skin. Protecting your skin from free-radical damage is a must if you want to keep it healthy and youthful-looking. Cocoa butter is also anti-inflammatory, which is another way it helps your skin resist the ravages of time.

• A stretch mark and scar reducer: Many women claim that the regular use of cocoa butter keeps stretch marks at bay during and after pregnancy. These claims are anecdotal, but you'll find many anti-stretch mark cocoa butter products to choose from. In fact, Palmers, a skincare line devoted to cocoa butter, offers a product just for stretch marks. Cocoa butter is also reputed to help heal scars.

• A deep moisturizer: Cocoa butter is high in fatty acids and hydrates the skin deeply, making it a wonderful addition to body moisturizers and lip balms. It contains oleic, palmitic, and stearic acids, all of which nourish the skin.

• A sensitive-skin healer: Again, no guarantees, but cocoa butter has been noted to help skin irritations such as eczema and dermatitis.