6 Steps To Help Get Rid Of Beard Itch

By Instash

Published 14:23 pm

6 Steps To Help Get Rid Of Beard Itch

Over the past couple of years, growing a beard has become a symbol of manliness and even a style staple in some circles. A lot of men who have beards enjoy having it, but growing and maintaining one is a completely different story. Some beards are patchy, some don’t grow as long, and some are incredibly itchy. If you’re experiencing the latter, here are a couple of tips to help make the urge to scratch your beard go away as quickly as possible.

Wash Your Beard On A Regular Basis

The first way to rid your beard of itchiness and redness is by washing it regularly. This may seem obvious enough, but a large number of men actually forego this step for a number of reasons. They may feel that this is unnecessary due to the fact that it gets wet in the shower. They think that there’s no point in dedicating a portion of their grooming routine to solely maintaining their facial hair. They may also feel that their beard doesn’t require regular washing if it doesn’t look or feel dirty.

You should remember that washing your beard and face on a regular basis helps to prevent the buildup of dirt and oil. Washing your face using warm water and a gentle cleanser also helps counteract the dryness that occurs when you have a beard, especially when you don’t dry it properly after every bath you take. Taking a shower or bath daily, or at least every other day will also help reduce the itchiness of one’s facial hair. Avoid using water that is too hot and don’t stay in the bath for too long.

Use Products Made For Facial Hair

Another way you can reduce dreaded beard itch is by using products specifically made for taking care of facial hair – be it cleansers, shampoos, or styling products. A worrying number of bearded men use the same shampoo that they use on the hair on their head, on the hair on their face. This just won’t do, as the amount of residue on your hair isn’t as much as that on your beard. Regular shampoo won’t fully get the job done. Beard shampoos, on the other hand, account for this excess dirt and oil. These may seem more expensive at the start, but you’ll only need to use a small amount for a proper cleanse.

If you can find some, you should use a beard conditioner over shampoo. If you regularly condition your beard, the hairs will become softer and less likely to irritate your skin. If there isn’t any beard conditioner available where you live, jojoba or argan oils are good substitutes. You should always avoid products that contain harsh chemicals that may end up doing the exact opposite of what they’re trying to accomplish. Look for as natural a product as you can. Your skin and your beard will thank you for it. Just make sure to rinse all the product you put in your beard away. This means you’ll take a bit longer than usual in the bathroom, but it’ll all be worth it.

Trim And Brush As Needed

Don’t let your beard hairs grow also. A longer beard needs a lot more moisture in the form of sebum oil – the body’s natural beard oil – to be kept healthy. Unfortunately, the body’s sebaceous glands will only produce a limited amount of sebum oil on a daily basis. If your beard grows longer than the glands’ capacity to make its moisturizing oils, then itchiness will begin. You can use products with moisturizing benefits to reduce the itchiness, but a more effective method to reduce it is to keep your facial hair at a more manageable length with a beard trimmer.

Aside from regularly trimming your beard hair, you should also comb it out often. Beard brushes are a great tool to have for this. It is important to differentiate this from a beard comb, which is more often used to style a beard as opposed to getting it straight. Try to look for a beard brush that’s made from boar’s hair, which is a durable, naturally occurring fiber that gives facial hair an additional shine.

Unlike beard brushes that are made out of synthetic or vegan hair, a boar’s hair brush is able to accomplish this by trapping the healthy oils in your beard and spreading it along each strand of hair. This also means that this type of brush helps evenly distribute the products that you put on your beard, such as beard oils and beard balms. Individual cuticles will get to experience the benefits of these wonderful products.

Moisturize Your Beard

Speaking of beard products, you should also use some regularly to moisturize your beard as well as the skin around it. Seems simple enough, right? However, confusion arises due to many men not knowing what type of moisturizer they should use as well as how often they should use it. And we are not talking about regular face moisturizers. If you’re experiencing these problems, here’s a rundown of the main varieties of beard moisturizers.

First off, we have beard oils that normally come with a base of three ingredients, which help reduce the itchiness of a beard, and make it look smoother and shinier. Namely, these ingredients are carrier oil, some form of essential oil, and vitamin E-rich oil. On the other hand, both beard balms and butters have the foundational ingredients found in beard oils, but with the addition of cocoa or shea butter as well as beeswax. These additional ingredients provide extra nourishment to your facial hair. Among these ingredients, carrier oil and butter are the most important.

Some people also prefer the latter two varieties for their ease of application. They are also more effective for those who reside in drier climates. Try to apply your preferred moisturizer at least once every other day, or daily if you can manage it. You only need a dime-sized amount of product if you’re using oil, or a thumbnail-sized amount if you’re using a balm or a butter. Spread the correct amount of product on your hands and make sure that no lumps form. Work the product into the beard outwards starting from the skin and scalp, and ending at the tip of the hairs.

Wash Your Sheets

If you’re doing everything right to your beard, but it still itches for some reason, then maybe the problem isn’t with your beard. Maybe the problem is with your environment, and nothing in your environment comes into contact more with your beard and face than your linens. You spend roughly a third of your life with your face pressed against your pillowcase or bed sheet. If these have dirt on them, you can be certain that at least some of it will transfer onto your beard.

Try changing and washing your linens on a weekly basis at the very least. This will prevent the buildup of dirt, dust, sweat, and dead skin cells. Also, try to fluff or vacuum your pillows when you wake up in the morning to remove superficial residues that may have accumulated from the night before. Avoid bringing food and drinks to your bed as well, as crumbs and spills are also a common culprit in causing an itchy beard. If you’re going to clean your sheets, make sure you use gentle laundry detergent. You should also make sure that you rinse and dry your linens off completely after washing them.

Medication And Surgery

Lastly, if all else fails, use some medication or get a procedure done on your beard. Itchy facial hair can be caused by a number of reasons and luckily, there are just as many ointments you can make use of to counteract them. If you suffer from extremely dry skin, look for an ointment that has a healthy amount of lactic acid and urea. Meanwhile, if you’re currently suffering from a fungal or bacterial infection, you should use an antifungal cream or mupirocin respectively to deal with them. If the cause of your beard itch is not an infection, then you can make do with a little bit of corticosteroid cream instead.

If the itchiness in your beard becomes chronic and if it occurs with frequent infections, then it might be time for some laser hair removal. This will remove the unwanted, itchy hair better than waxing, plucking, or tweezing ever will because it destroys the hair follicle completely using concentrated light. Don’t worry, though, it doesn’t hurt half as bad as it sounds like it does.

If growing a beard causes you to grow itch-inducing boils or carbuncles, then a different procedure may be recommended. If this is the case, the doctor may need to make incisions to these abscesses in order to reduce your urge to scratch them. Removing these growths is also a good idea because, if left untreated, they may aggravate infections. You could also get photodynamic or light therapy done if the cause of the itchiness is an inflammation of the hair follicles.

If you follow these six simple steps, you’ll be guaranteed to less feel itchy around the beard area in no time at all. Thanks to your well-kept beard, you’ll get to feel super comfortable while at the same time look extremely rugged and manly.