Cocoa Butter For Tanning – How To Use It

We are always on the lookout for the perfect tanning products, something that will not only help darken our skin but also moisturize and give it a beautiful glow.

For many, having a natural option is best, and one of the natural products commonly used in the tanning market is cocoa butter.

Cocoa butter may not help you achieve a darker tan while under the sun, but it will help your skin remain moisturized and hydrated, which is key to ensuring that your tan glows and looks as gorgeous as possible.

How to Use Cocoa Butter For Tanning

Cocoa butter is an excellent choice for preventing and treating dry skin, and it is often included in various skincare and beauty products to provide the skin with an extra boost.

More and more self-tanners, Summer lotions, and sun tanning oils are incorporating cocoa butter into their formulas, which takes the products to the next level, helping to keep skin hydrated and glowing in high-heat situations.

There are good reasons why cocoa butter is beneficial to use in tanning products or before and after tanning. Cocoa butter has wonderful moisturizing benefits.

The oils in the butter work to lock water in close to the skin, allowing the skin to remain hydrated throughout the day.

Before Tanning

Applying cocoa butter to your skin before tanning helps prevent your skin from drying out from the sun’s heat and ensures that your skin retains a tan well, without flaking or peeling.

It is essential to remember that you will need to use additional tanning products when heading out into the sun, and the cocoa butter should be used as a base only.

Additional products should be applied to the skin before tanning to provide extra protection and encourage further skin darkening.

Cocoa butter can be used for tanning in the sun or in a self-tanning bed.

After Tanning

For those who choose to tan in the sun, flaking skin is a common problem.

The sun does a great job at drying out skin, and this can really ruin a tan and cause some serious damage to the skin as well.

Cocoa butter helps prevent skin flaking and provides the skin with the hydration it needs, locking in moisture for an extended period, allowing the skin to replenish the moisture it has lost.

Moisturized skin holds a tan much better than dry skin, and your tan will remain even and glowing on the skin that has been kept properly hydrated.

What Makes Cocoa Butter Great For Tanning

Cocoa butter is one of nature’s greatest gifts. Cocoa butter is a pure, stable fat that is pressed out from raw cocoa beans.

Apart from what the name suggests, cocoa butter does not contain any dairy.

It retains its solid state at room temperature, making it fairly easy to use, especially when lathering on your body to achieve a golden glow or maintain your tan.

Cocoa butter is popular in the beauty industry thanks to its composition.

The high amount of saturated fats is beneficial for rejuvenating the skin, and the antioxidants work to further protect the skin.

With the addition of flavonoids and antioxidants, cocoa butter works to remedy wrinkles, blemishes, acne, and scars.

This formulation, combined with the rich nutrients in cocoa butter, makes it the perfect companion to other tanning products, helping to protect the skin against damage from UV rays.

The Two Types Of Cocoa Butter

When purchasing cocoa butter on its own, and not mixed with tanning products, it pays to know the difference between the two types available, with one being more effective for tanning.

One type of cocoa butter sold is heated cocoa butter. This is heated to a high temperature during the manufacturing process, which causes it to lose some of its fat and nutrient-rich content.

The second type is raw cocoa butter. This is usually considered pure cocoa butter and has not been heated to high temperatures during the manufacturing process.

It is not highly processed, which means it is healthier compared to heated cocoa butter.

Raw cocoa butter also contains a high amount of healthy fats, which is beneficial in providing the skin with the right nutrients it needs to heal and remain healthy.

Raw cocoa butter is by far the better option to use for tanning, both before and after exposure to the sun. 

What Cocoa Butter Can’t Do

There is a misconception that cocoa butter will make you tan faster when applied to the skin before exposure to the sun or a tanning bed.

This is not entirely true, and you should not rely on cocoa butter to quickly develop a tan.

Instead, applied to the skin before or after tanning, cocoa butter enhances an already developed tan, making it look amazing.

This is thanks to its incredible moisturizing abilities, which keep skin hydrated and glowing, enhancing the golden glow you already have.

How Often Should You Apply Cocoa Butter

The natural cocoa fats in cocoa butter help lock in water in the skin for a prolonged period, keeping it hydrated throughout the day.

For daily maintenance, apply cocoa butter once a day, preferably after a shower, as your skin will have some excess moisture, and the cocoa butter will help make the most of it.

If you have been tanning in the sun or a salon, your skin will be drier than normal.

You will also want to make the most of the tan you have spent so much time achieving, so you should look to apply the cocoa butter to your skin twice daily, once in the morning and once in the evening before bed.

The cocoa butter may feel slightly greasy on your skin, so try applying it a few minutes before getting dressed or before going to bed.

For your face, you might prefer to look for a beauty lotion that is infused with cocoa oil or cocoa butter, as cocoa butter is comedogenic.

It might end up clogging pores, which is why it is best used on the rest of the body, but not on the face.

Those who battle with oily skin should avoid using cocoa butter on their face, as it can clog pores and cause excessive oil production, blocking sebum and other materials that could lead to a breakout.

For the rest of the body, cocoa butter is ideal for use, and it is widely available in most stores, making it fairly affordable compared to other beauty products.

Related Questions

Are cocoa butter and shea butter the same?

Cocoa butter and shea butter come from different sources. Shea butter is extracted from nuts found on the shea tree, while cocoa butter comes from cocoa beans.

However, both are commonly used in cosmetics, creams, lotions, and soap. Shea butter is not as hard as cocoa butter and melts easily when it comes into contact with the skin.

Shea butter has a vanilla aroma, while cocoa butter has a more chocolatey scent.

Cocoa butter is better suited for tanning, as it contains ingredients that shea butter does not..

Does cocoa butter help with stretch marks?

Cocoa butter helps reduce the appearance of stretch marks and makes them less visible when applied with a self-tanner at home.

Stretch marks require extra moisture to minimize their visibility with self-tanners, as they need hydration to hold onto the product.

You can also check out these self-tanners that are best to use with stretch marks.

Using cocoa butter, the stretch marks will be more moisturized and will be able to absorb and develop color, making them appear more even with the rest of the skin.

The rich fatty acids in cocoa butter also work to reduce the appearance of stretch marks overall.

Conclusion

So, you can’t rely on cocoa butter to help you develop a dark tan, but you can use it before and after tanning to give your skin much-needed hydration to protect it from drying out and flaking.

Tanned skin that has been treated with cocoa butter glows, and it is worth it to give your skin a radiance that makes your tan stand out.

Your skin will be healthier, nourished, and absolutely gorgeous when you incorporate cocoa butter into your daily skin-care routine.

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