The Shunga Massage cream is designed to create a sensual experience between you and your partner. Along with moisturizing the skin, it is also edible, allowing you to lick along with massage if you desire. The Shunga massage cream is designed for external use only and should not be placed on open wounds, burns, or otherwise damaged skin. It can be used as a personal lotion if you desire, because it does soften skin and contain helpful ingredients.

The ingredients of the Mint Shunga Massage cream are: Water, Stearic acid, Glycerin, Carthamus tinctorius, Sorbitol, Cetyl alcohol, Glyceryl stearate, Peg 100 stearate, Petrolatum, Triethanolamine, Aroma, Methylparaben, Sodium saccharin, Honey, Tocopherol acetate, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Methylisothiazolinone.

If you want an analysis of these ingredients, you'll find it in the personal comments section. It's long and nitty gritty, so I will provide the summary here and more curious readers can check it out at their liesure below. The massage cream is edible, but if you ingest too much (like half the jar, or less if you have a delicate constitution) there is a chance you will, ahem, have digestion problems. This is because a few of these ingredients are used in laxatives and irrigation.

NOTE: The cream also has parabens. Parabens are used as a preservative, but they are known to cause allergic reactions for those with sensitive skin. The shunga cream contains Methylparaben, which is found naturally in some fruits, such as blueberries. Methylparaben is classified as "generally recognized as safe." There have been some studies that certain parabens mimic estrogen and may be linked to breast cancer. This doesn't appear to be the case with Methylparaben. Side note: It is good to check if your deodorant has parabens because parabens can migrate from under the arms to breast tissue.

Other than that, these ingredients appear edible, or non-toxic, in small, one-use quantities. The flavoring is artificial and it contains some saturated fats. It doesn't seem to be caustic for sensitive skin, but I would try applying a test spot first, wait a day or two, and then see if your skin reacts to the massage cream (better safe than sorry).

If you are diabetic, I would limit the consumption of this product even further because the cream contains some artificial sweeteners that are derived from glucose. It might not spike your sugar levels like glucose does, but it creates more of a strain on the body to process these sweeteners (an effort on everyone's body, really).

The texture of the Shunga massage cream is that of lotion. It's a bit disheartening because when the word "cream" is used, I assume the texture is thicker and holds its form. I wouldn't say the Shunga cream is runny, but if you took a big glob of it and moved a bit fast, it might fly. The massage cream is soupy, if you tilt the jar, the liquid will respond.



The massage cream feels nice on the skin. It feels cool when going on. When it goes on, it has a white film, like sunscreen, and takes a bit of rubbing to get it in the skin. It dries fast for massage cream, and within a couple of minutes, any residual feeling on your hands is gone. The cream is not greasy or really sticky.

I chose the mint massage cream and was expecting a refreshing, potentially fresh minty aroma. Instead the mint cream smells like crushed, liquified mint Tic-tacs. Or like winterfresh gum. It has a fake sweet smell to it I didn't expect. I thought the mint cream would smell more like menthol or toothpaste (not necessarily sexy, but that was the kind of mint I was expecting.) The scent is pretty strong, but considering mint scented products are strong, the Shunga mint massage cream isn't too extreme.

The Shunga massage cream is edible, and while I generally don't eat any edible creams, the Shunga was on sale, and I have a review, so I must deliver (Science!). Of course, the massage cream is not meant to be food, it is supposed to add more options and fun to massage. That being said, you can definitely taste the artificial sugars. I would not wat any food that tastes like this lotion. It leaves a residue on your lips, and it does have a lotion back-taste. Overall, it's not very appetizing. It's edible, that's about it. Maybe the other flavors taste better.

As a lotion: The Shunga massage cream does soften skin. I've used it on my elbows, knees, and feet. Over the past couple of weeks, I've noticed them softer. If you're looking for something to function as a moisturizer only, I wouldn't get the Shunga cream, but it is a good choice when you don't have anything else lying around or when it's the closest thing you have.

For sexy/sensual time: If you plan on doing a massage session, be prepared to use A LOT of this stuff. It dries quickly, so you'll need to reapply or use a thick layer to start with. If you don't, you won't be able to glide across the skin and massage muscles. If you apply pressure during massage and do not moisturize enough, you could pull skin or hair, and that will take the sexy out of the massage.

Clean up: If you rub it in to skin, the cream doesn't leave much of a residue after a couple of minutes. If you don't want to smell like cheap mint candy, you can always shower after your massage session. The Shunga cream washes away with soap and water with no problem. If the smell is you concern, it does go away after 15 minutes or so (or it's not as noticeable). You won't smell strongly of it after a bit of time.

The Shunga massage cream comes in a black, thin cardboard/paper box with the Shunga artwork on it. When you open that, the massage cream is in a black, squat, cylindrical, plastic jar. Twist off the cap and there's a thin, plastic top that is there to prevent the cream from sloshing around. The plastic piece isn't attached to anything and stays on more based on suction. When you open it, sometimes that piece will be stuck to the cap, not on top of the lotion.

The box isn't intended for long term storage, but you could keep your massage cream jar in it if you wanted. The jar can be stored and kept alone. Because it is massage cream, the Shunga is discreet. You can put it on top of your dresser among your other beauty products. It's as taboo as having lotion out in the open (it does have the word "erotic" on the top of the lid though).

The following is a brief break down of the majority of the ingredients. My sources are primarily the MSDS (material data safety sheets) with the occasional wikipedia. I placed this here because the ingredients list, while interesting, is dry. So if you're curious, read on, if not, I won't be offended.

Stearic acid is a saturated fat. I dont think anyone is looking to eat this stuff as desert, but it's good to know that the massage cream contains unhealthy fats. Saturated fats are the bad fats because the water makes the fat lose the beneficial structure of unsaturated fats (kinked). There is no nutritional label on the Shunga massage cream, but since it is not the first ingredient, I doubt the fat content of the cream is completely diet altering. Either way, stearic acids are used in industry as a softener, they are present in a majority of lotions, such as cocoa butter.

Glycerin is not great for lubes, but since it does not have internal use, it is okay for its purpose as massage cream. A main ingredient, glycerin is most likely responsible for the cream being water soluble so you are able to wash it away with water when you are done with it. Glycerin also is used to retain water so the cream can last longer. Glycerin is sometimes even used in foods for various reasons, so it is okay to consume.

Sorbitol is everywhere - toothpaste, mouthwash, sweetener, etc. Important: artificial sweeteners are sometimes derived from sugar. FDA labeling laws only consider certain ingredients as "sugar." A good example can be sorbitol. it is derived from glucose, but doesn't count as "sugar." Damn labeling laws. Anyway, sorbitol probably gives the cream its sweet flavor. Sodium saccharin is also a sweetener used in the cream as well. Saccharin is a derivative (originally, at least) from coal tar. Yum! It is sweeter than sucrose, but has no beneficial nutritional value.

Safflower oil- On the jar it says Safflower oil, but on the product page it gives Carthamus tinctorius. I understand that the label gives it's proper, latin name, but I think more people would understand Safflower. Regardless, safflower has many uses in the industry, but it is most likely used here for the oil, which is edible and similar to sunflower oil.

Cetyl Alcohol is used mostly as a a thickener.

Peg 100 stearate - if you notice, there are a few ingredients in the stearate family. This on in particular is a mix of mostly botanical oils that are used in many cosmetics. PEG is polyethylene glycol which is used medically as a laxative. However, it's properties change when bonded to stearate and becomes a skin softener. Interestingly, PEG 100 Stearate is considered non-toxic for a small amount of ingestion, but is noted for organ toxicity in high doses. Essentially, don't eat the jar like it's candy.

Tocopherol acetate is Vitamin E. It's used in skin products to penetrate the skin and add potential antioxidant affects. It can also increase the shelf life of whatever it is in.

The "one's" at the end - these guys are preservatives and contain anti-microbial properties. Being the last couple if ingredients, they are only used in small quantities.

As someone who has taken a couple of massage classes, the Shunga cream is better than some of the stuff they had us use, but it's not the best. It feels more like a lotion than a cream. To me, a cream should keep its form when I remove some from the jar. It shouldn't run off my hands. Perhaps if Shunga didn't use the word "cream" it wouldn't bother me as much.