If you ask nine different guys the question “how often should you wash your beard?” you may receive ten different answers. This is the most convincing proof that most men don’t really know much about the self-care routine of their beards. If you find yourself in the same situation, don’t worry because you’re not alone. This post will settle this matter by giving you a straight and precise answer.
Why You Should Wash Your Beard
It’s easy to spot a man who hasn’t washed his hair for some days. The result of this lack of self-care is a greasy mess or even a bit of matted hair. Everyone knows this, and everyone understands that’s why we should use shampoo on a regular basis.
This kind of hair product is designed to get rid of excessive amounts of natural oil, making your head hair look better. The reason shampoo is popular than beard wash is that your scalp produces oil in a much greater amount than our face, requiring us to wash our head hair more often. On top of that, the hair on our head doesn’t need much oil to look great as it isn’t as coarse as our facial hair.
The difference in awareness of head hair and facial hair self-care is massive, even though they have many similar properties. That is why, like regular shampoo, men should also put some attention to their beard wash – one of the most important and useful beard care products.
This is especially important if you intend to grow a long beard. Like head hair, facial hair also requires some oil, but in a greater amount. And since facial hair is usually thicker and coarser with a different texture, it has the tendency to dry out much more quickly than our head hair. It may become a huge issue for long beards if you only use regular shampoo for them, as it can strip all the natural oils away and leave your beard dry.
Additionally, our face produces less oil, while regular shampoo products are usually too harsh for our face skin. Our face can’t keep up the pace of natural oil being stripped away, leading to dehydrated beard and skin. It’s also the main reason you may end up with a lot of dandruff and beard itch if you choose regular shampoo for your beard.
What Would Happen If You Over-Wash Your Beard?
Over-washing beard is a common habit among many men, and it’s a bad thing to follow. While rinsing your beard with water is a good thing to do daily, especially in your daily shower, using beard wash, shampoo, or conditioner on a daily basis just does more harm than good, with a lot of possible side effects.
Basically, your beard gets a huge benefit from the natural oils your face skin produces. They are crucial to maintaining the texture and structural integrity of your facial hair.
Of you, you should wash your beard regularly when these oils have built up too much, leading to greasy hair or clogged pores. But remember not to overdo it, or you will risk removing the advantage of having natural oils too.
If you wash away those oils too often, your facial hair and skin can be dried out quickly, making it easier to break the hair. Your beard may end up with a crunchy appearance or plenty of split ends. Your skin may also feel flaky and dry, and dandruff may start to appear in a huge amount. Overall, over-washing is not the correct way to take care of your beard, even if you just want to keep it from getting too dirty.
How Often Should You Wash Your Beard?
The length of your beard
This seems to be irrelevant information, but how often you should wash and condition your beard depends a lot on its style.
Short beards
If you have a short beard, there is good news for you: the frequency of required washing and conditioning decreases with the length of your beard. By saying this, we don’t mean you should ignore those self-care steps completely, as there is still a possibility that your facial hair may suffer from the above reasons. Short or long, no one wants our beard to look greasy and messy all the time.
A short beard gives you many advantages when it comes to grooming. It doesn’t trap shampoo and conditioner the same way a longer beard does. You’re less likely to suffer from a dried-out beard even if you use a beard soap every day. But you should still not overdo it. Drying can happen, and it can damage each hair strand and your face skin as well. The recommended routine is to wash your beard with only water once a day, particularly when you take a shower while following the frequency of washing guidelines for longer beards.
Long beards
With a long beard, the natural oils that the face skin produces play a vital role. They need to reach all the way to the tips of all your facial hair strands so your beard can fully enjoy the benefits of those natural oils. This depends on the amount your face can create, especially when you have decided to grow a long beard.
That’s why men with long beards should put some extra attention into their washing and conditioning routine. Doing this too often can strip away all the good oils from your facial hair, leaving it dried out and in an unhealthy condition like it’s supposed to be.
The type of your skin
Dry skin
If you have dry skin, this is usually due to the lack of natural oils, especially sebum. Our skin produces sebum in order to maintain its nourishment and keep in a healthy condition. When your skin gets an insufficient amount of natural oils, the chance your hair gets dried out will be higher.
To prevent this, men with dry skin should wash their beards every 2 or 3 days. If your skin is tight or flaky, a period of 3 or 4 days between washing is recommended as it can help you prevent your beard from becoming flakier.
Oily skin
Now the situation has been reversed. Men with oily skin usually suffer from a greasy beard, which is the result of an excessive amount of sebum produced by your skin. This may lead to other major issues, like clogging the pores and promoting ance and beardruff.
If this is exactly your issue, consider washing your beard every day. This works because it washes away the excess oil, putting the amount of natural oils in your facial hair under control. It’s a good habit if you can wash your beard every 4 or 5 hours to prevent the buildup of skin oils.
Hybrid type
Men with combination skin have the best (and the worst) of both worlds: oily and dry. And this is not an even distribution and mixture. There are some parts of your face that are greasier than others, why some may be dry skin. You need to identify this before finding the best self-care routine for yourself. For most people, the T-zone is the most oily area while other parts of their faces are drier.
If this is also true for you, you may need to wash your facial hair every alternative day. Doing this with warm water can keep the balance between the dryness and greasiness of your beard.
The type of your facial hair
Thick and coarse hair
Men with thick and coarse hair – for example, African Americans – usually find it harder to oil it up, and as a result, their beards are prone to dryness. The situation even gets worse if you have a curly beard, as facial hair with a wavy shape makes it harder for sebum oil to move down and reach the tips of all the hair strands. As a smaller amount of supplement reaches your beard, dehydration is more likely to happen.
The above risks are the main reason people with thick and coarse hair are advised to wash their beards once every 3 days to avoid dehydration.
Thin hair
On the other hand, a thin beard gets oily much easier compared to thick and coarse hair. Just a few drops of natural oils and your thin air will become greasy immediately. If you feel that there is too much excess oil in your beard, you should wash it every day to make it less oily. This is also helpful if you have a patchy beard, as daily washing can make it appear fuller and fluffier.
Environment
Wet climate
Climate with a high level of humidity generally provides many benefits for our skin and facial hair, making them stronger, softer, and more supple. But there is not always a good thing. Too much moisture can lead to sticky skin, meaning dirt and microorganisms have a perfect environment to build upon your skin. As a result, a wet climate can lead to acne, inflammation, and clogged pores.
To counter those effects, you should wash your beard with shampoo more often, then follow up with some beard oil and conditioner to store the level of moisture.
Dry climate
If you live in a region where it’s always dry throughout the year and gets hot or cold easily, your beard and skin will run into a lot of problems. Due to the lack of moisture and a huge level of dryness, extremely hot weather can parch your beard. On the other hand, it may freeze and break your facial hair if it gets too cold. The simplest solution for this kind of climate is to let some sebum build up on your face skin to hydrate it in a natural way.
Reduce the times you use shampoo, and if you use it, always apply some beard oil and conditioner afterward to make up for the lost moisture. Sealing the moisture over your skin with beard balm is also a great choice.
Other factors
Products you are using
Don’t use regular soap to wash your beard. This is a terrible idea as soap has a lot of harsh ingredients, and it can strip away most natural oils in your facial hair, leaving it severely dry.
Only use shampoo products that are made for beards. As they usually contain more gentle ingredients for facial hair, these products preserve the moisture of your beard and don’t remove the necessary natural oils from it. A high-quality beard shampoo even allows you to wash your beard more frequently.
Water temperature
Even on an extremely cold day, don’t splash hot water over your face to wash your beard. Higher temperatures encourage the circulation of your skin, which may lead to itchiness, dryness, and inflammation. Use only warm water and finish your routine with a splash of cold water for the best result, as it can close the pores and seal in moisture.
Beard conditioning
You should never skip this step in your grooming routine and even use some oil to make your beard healthier. Wash your beard and follow up with both beard conditioner and oil.
A good conditioner can restore the necessary level of moisture. At the same time, beard oils go deeper into your face skin, acting like sebum oil to maintain the balance of your skin. As beard oils don’t have heavy ingredients that we usually find in creams or lotions, they can put a greater amount of natural ingredients into our skin and facial hair.
When To Wash Your Beard
The best time to wash it is during your shower, but in the morning and in the evening is also a great choice. A simple wash with some conditioner and oil following up is enough. Make sure you have a towel ready so you can gently pat your beard afterward and let it dry fully.
Conclusion
So, how often should you wash your beard? This depends on a whole host of things, like which type of beard and skin you have and the climate of where you live. But overall, you should never wash your beard more than 3 times per week. Remember to follow the recommended routines and products to make sure your beard will always be healthy and have a great look.