Beef tallow is everywhere right now.
Scroll through TikTok or Instagram long enough and you'll probably see someone talking about using tallow for dry skin, sensitive skin, or even eczema-prone skin.
And if you're the person whose skin always seems dry, whose child is scratching again after bath time, or who feels like everything you try causes another reaction, it's easy to understand the appeal.
You don't want another trend.
You want something that works for your skin.
Tallow can be one option. But it isn't the only one.
Why is everybody talking about tallow?
Beef tallow is rendered animal fat. Its richness can soften skin and create an occlusive layer that helps slow moisture loss.
That's useful.
But social media has taken that basic function much further, with claims that tallow can treat everything from acne to eczema.
The research hasn't caught up with those claims. Studies looking specifically at topical tallow in humans are still limited, and recent research examining tallow content on social media found that claims about conditions such as eczema were common but often unsupported by evidence.
So tallow isn't necessarily bad.
It just isn't magic.
But what if you don't want to use animal fat?
Meet murumuru butter
Murumuru butter comes from the seeds of the murumuru palm, which grows in the Amazon region. It's a plant-derived butter containing fatty acids and naturally occurring lipid components that give it its rich, buttery character. Research analyzing murumuru fat has also identified tocopherols, compounds within the vitamin E family.
But here's what actually matters when you're standing there looking at dry skin:
Murumuru helps soften and condition it.
It gives us another way to bring richness and lipids to dry skin without relying on an animal-derived fat.
That doesn't make murumuru better than tallow.
And tallow being animal-derived doesn't make it better than murumuru.
They're simply different options.
But dry, itchy skin may be asking for something else
This is the part that gets lost when one ingredient becomes the star of the internet.
Sometimes dry skin doesn't need more fat.
It needs help getting and keeping moisture.
That's particularly important when we're talking about eczema-prone skin. The skin barrier doesn't hold onto water as effectively, which contributes to that cycle of dryness, discomfort and itching.
That's why dermatologists recommend consistent moisturization for eczema-prone skin and often recommend fragrance-free creams or ointments rather than lighter lotions.
Tallow can help reduce moisture loss.
Murumuru butter can contribute richness and softness.
But neither one is an eczema treatment.
And neither one, by itself, tells you whether a moisturizer is going to work for your skin.
So what should you actually look for?
Instead of asking:
"Does this have tallow?"
Try asking:
"What is this entire formula doing for my skin?"
Does it provide hydration?
Does it contain ingredients that help the skin hold onto that water?
Does it contain oils or butters that soften dry, rough skin?
Does it help reduce moisture loss?
And if your skin reacts to seemingly everything, is the product fragrance-free and designed with sensitive skin in mind?
Those questions tell you considerably more than whichever ingredient happens to be trending this month.
If you want to understand why water, oils, creams and butters perform different jobs, we break that down in Body Lotion vs. Body Cream vs. Body Butter: What's Actually the Difference?
→ Read: Body Lotion vs. Body Cream vs. Body Butter
Why you'll find murumuru in Sage
Sage wasn't created around a trending ingredient.
It was created around a very real problem: skin that gets dry, uncomfortable and seems to react to everything.
Murumuru butter is one part of that approach. Not because we're claiming it's a miracle ingredient. Not because it treats eczema.
Because when you're caring for sensitive skin, every ingredient should have a reason for being there.
And sometimes the answer isn't finding the ingredient everybody else is talking about.
It's finding a formula that understands what your skin has been trying to tell you.