SheaMoisture African Black Soap Clarifying Facial Wash & Scrub for oily skin

How to apply

Questions and answers

What the research says

• Twice daily application of a multitargeted dermocosmetic cream provided comparable efficacy to benzoyl peroxide 5% gel in reducing inflammatory, non-inflammatory, and total lesions in 150 Caucasian subjects with mild-to-moderate acne over 56 days, while demonstrating superior skin tolerability.

  Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2024

• The use of a salicylic acid-based dermocosmetic significantly reduces the needed quantity of benzoyl peroxide without impacting efficacy in mild to moderate acne, and as maintenance post-benzoyl peroxide allows a significant reduction of acne relapse compared to vehicle.

  Journal of Drugs in Dermatology, 2023

• Topical dexpanthenol acts as a moisturizer, improves stratum corneum hydration, accelerates wound healing and epidermal regeneration, reduces erythema, and improves symptoms of skin irritation compared to vehicle or no pretreatment.

  American Journal of Clinical Dermatology, 2002

• A new topical panthenol-containing emollient significantly improved transepidermal water loss reduction, stratum corneum hydration, and intercellular lipid lamellae length compared with control in healthy subjects without negatively impacting bacterial viability.

  The Journal of Dermatological Treatment, 2017

• A panthenol-enriched mask significantly decreased erythema and hyperpigmentation, increased sebum and stratum corneum moisture, and reduced transepidermal water loss compared to a saline dressing in 60 subjects undergoing facial laser treatment.

  Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2025

• A survey of 100 black soap users demonstrated that the vast majority found the soap helpful for overall skin care and dermatologic conditions such as acne and dark spots.

  The Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology, 2017

• Topical application of a water-in-oil cosmetic emulsion containing 4% Tamarindus indica seeds extract significantly improved skin elasticity, moisture content, and surface evaluation parameters in 11 healthy male volunteers compared to a control base over 12 weeks.

  Postepy Dermatologii I Alergologii, 2017

• Tamarindus indica n-hexane extracts from various organs demonstrated anti-inflammatory and wound healing activities by inhibiting nitric oxide and promoting fibroblast migration in in-vitro assays compared to control cells.

  Plants, 2022

• Topical lycopene-enriched virgin olive oil provides effective pain relief similar to a placebo in patients with burning mouth syndrome, showing a strong placebo effect.

  Journal of Oral Rehabilitation, 2014

• A combination cream of stimu-tex AS and saccharide isomerate reduced erythema, increased skin capacitance, and reduced transepidermal water loss compared to placebo in 20 subjects after fractional CO2 laser procedure without causing serious adverse events.

  Lasers in Medical Science, 2025

• A skin barrier restoring cream with shea butter, silkflo, and vitamin E increased type I procollagen synthesis, enhanced antioxidant enzyme activity, decreased reactive oxygen species generation, and promoted hyaluronic acid production in H2O2-stimulated human keratinocyte cells compared to untreated cells.

  International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2025

• Cryotherapy with liquid nitrogen achieved a higher cure rate (39%) than salicylic acid (24%) and a wait-and-see approach (16%) for cutaneous warts at 13 weeks in primary care patients.

  CMAJ, 2010

• A moisturizer containing licochalcone A, 1,2-decanediol, L-carnitine, and salicylic acid significantly reduced noninflammatory, inflammatory, and total acne lesion counts compared to a vehicle control in Thai patients during a 12-week maintenance phase.

  BioMed Research International, 2020

• Treatment with 2% supramolecular salicylic acid hydrogel resulted in a regression and markedly improvement rate of 51.01% compared to 43.10% for Adapaline gel in patients with mild to moderate facial acne vulgaris, showing no significant difference in efficacy.

  Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2024

Ingredients

Water, Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate, Cetyl Alcohol, Glycerin, Myristyl Alcohol, Stearic Acid, Mangifera Indica Seed Oil, Myristic Acid, Coconut Acid, Jojoba Esters, Polysorbate 60, Glyceryl Caprylate, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter Shea Butter, Blend Essential Oil, Sodium Palm Kernelate, Sodium Shea Butterate, Sodium Cocoate, Theobroma Cacao Pod Ash, Salix Nigra Bark Extract Willow Bark Extract, Salicylic Acid, Nigella Sativa Seed Oil, Ormenis Multicaulis Oil, Bisabolol, Melaleuca Alternifolia Tree Oil Leaf, Decyl Glucoside, Tamarindus Indica Fruit Extract, Panthenol, Potassium Hydroxide, Glyceryl Undecylenate

Behind this fit score

Lovi calculates every fit score from the full ingredient list with brand-independent rules our dermatologists and cosmetic chemists build and review, and personalizes every pick with AI trained on the real results of millions of users. Lovi trains its fit score models on a proprietary dataset built from more than 10,000 expert-labeled products and more than 100,000 simulated examples, following an internally consistent methodology presented at Cosmoprof, AMWC, and Skin of Color Update.