Discovering new ingredients to treat myself like a guinea pig is my favorite activity when it comes to my hair. And as a girl with textured tresses, I love my butters: shea, mango, tamanu, and now, tucuma. As it turns out, natural, plant-derived tucuma butter hails from the Amazonian Rainforest, or what I like to call, the Disneyland of magical beauty ingredients. However, while mystical origins might be enough to convince some of tucuma's claimed benefits, this beauty editor (and lifelong skeptic), wasn't so sure. That's why I turned to experts Michelle Henry, Shuting Hu, Lacy Fields, and Stacy Chimento to find out more.
Meet the Expert
Keep scrolling to find out what they had to say about the benefits of tucuma butter for hair.
"Tucuma butter is derived from the tucuma palm seeds. Tucuma seeds are naturally found in Brazil in the tucuma fruit," says Chimento. It contains antioxidant polyphenols and a high level of moisturizing fatty acids. And like murumuru butter, tucuma butter is used to treat dry and frizzy hair, adds Chimento.
Tucuma Butter for Hair
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If your hair is damaged—whether due to heat styling or your recent bleach job—it can benefit from tucuma butter. And if you've got a thick mane, even better. Of course, that's not to say that those with fine strands can't also use tucuma; just keep in mind that less is more. "Depending on your hair type, you can use it daily. People with coarse, curly hair can use it more often than people with thin or fine hair," Henry shares.
The best way to apply tucuma butter is to take a few tablespoons and melt it down. "One side effect for using tucuma butter is if you do not melt the butter, you will not get the proper benefits for your hair," emphasizes Fields. "Once liquid, you can mix in any additional oils such as vitamin E oil, argan oil, or coconut oil," explains Hu. The oils actually work to balance out tucuma's buttery texture. They will also enhance hair's shine, adds Chimento. Let your DIY concoction sit in the fridge and apply it as a hair mask, leaving it in for about 30 minutes. "I recommend using the mask before shampooing or leaving it in as an overnight treatment for extremely dry hair," says Hu.
Obia
Hair Care Twist Whip Butter
$18
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If you rock natural hair, this butter—or butters, to be exact—will set and prep your locks for nearly any protective style. Its formula of shea butter, tucuma butter, and mango butter works to seal in hair's moisture and turn up the gloss factor. Meanwhile, lemongrass and lavender essential oils will give your 'do that something extra.
Sol de Janeiro
Triple Brazilian Butter™ Hair Repair Treatment Mask
$36
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While I do love me a good summertime perfume, this repair treatment works double-time by offering major hair benefits and the scent of summer. In fact, it shares the same fragrance as Sol de Janeiro's cult-favorite Bum Bum Cream. Featuring a mélange à trois, if you will, of butters—cupuaçu, murumuru, and tucuma—it fights frizz and flyaways and best of all, bad hair days.
Oslove
100% Pure Tucuma Butter
$25
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Hair will get high marks on the silky-soft meter thanks to nothing more than tucuma butter, pure and simple. Just be sure to rub it in your hands first before application (this will liquefy the solid). Then watch as the three Ds of #hairproblems—dryness, damage, and dullness—melt away.
Original Moxie
Moxie Hair Bling High Shine Pomade
$23
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With a name like Hair Bling, it should come as no surprise that this pomade delivers on high-octane shine. With a formula boasting mango and tucuma butter, Chimento recommends it for hydrating and protecting dry, coarse hair. And if that's not enough to win you over, its intoxicating scent will.
Devacurl
Supermousse
$13
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If humidity has got your curls in a tizzy (read: frizzy), don't be alarmed. Instead, reach for this volumizing mousse which works wonders on a curly mane. With coconut oil, tucuma butter, and sunflower extract, it promotes shine, definition, and texture—without the crunch. Basically, it helps your curls live their best life, and really, would you have it any other way?
Yes, especially since low-porosity hair does not absorb water well. Tucuma butter will coat the hair, thereby locking in moisture. Still, that's not to say that it also doesn't help high porosity hair, too. In fact, it can benefit any hair type that is dry and/or damaged.
Despite being a butter, tucuma is rather lightweight and will not leave a greasy feel on hair. However, if you have fine or thin tresses, you may want to use tucuma butter just once a week.
"Murumuru and tucuma butter offer virtually the same [hair] benefits, both moisturizing dry, frizzy hair. However, while murumuru leaves your hair shiny, tucuma butter acts as a sealing butter for hair to maintain moisture and is rich in vitamin A, promoting stronger hair growth," explains Chimento.