Beards are trendy: many men are deliberately saying goodbye to their cleanly-shaven baby face to proudly suit themselves with trendy facial hair – whether it’s the three-day beard, the upper lip beard or the full beard. Anyone who thinks highly of themselves seems to be growing a beard.
There is only one small problem: not everyone has been gifted with luxurious facial hair. Sparse hair growth and bald patches quickly ruin a man’s dream. Understandably, men will reach deeply into their bag of tricks to achieve a strong beard.
What really are the possibilities though? How can beard growth be accelerated effectively and which “myths” can you finally erase from your memory? We took a closer look at this exciting subject. Here we present our best tips and tricks on how to make your beard grow faster.
Three Myths About Beard Growth
Whether in specialist magazines, at the pub with the boys or at the dermatologist’s – we keep coming across different myths regarding beard growth. What are we even supposed to believe nowadays? Let’s put an end to it and clear the air. These are the 4 biggest myths about beard growth.
1. Frequent Shaving – A Growth Turbo
If you shave often, can you look forward to a dense beard? Unfortunately, it’s not that simple with beard growth. A razor blade does not impress our facial hair. Because no matter how often you reach for the razor, the beard hairs still grow on average between 0.3 and 0.5 mm per day – business as usual.
2. Garlic, the Bulb of Growth
Speaking of myths, garlic is pure gold when it comes to repelling vampires. But there is a second huge myth surrounding this little miracle plant. Apparently it can make the beard thicker and stronger. Is there any truth in this? It’s hard to say, because the stimulating effect of garlic on beard growth has not been scientifically proven.
3. Biotin & Silica
Biotin and silica are hair loss’s greatest enemies? At least that’s what people say. No wonder we convince ourselves to include these nutrients in our diet to stimulate our beard growth. And there is some truth in that. These two secret weapons actually help our hair roots to thrive. But that doesn’t mean they can magically produce a stunning full beard, sorry.
Encouraging Beard Growth: What Really Helps
But don’t worry: these were only the myths regarding beard growth. May we introduce you to a few real insider tips for strong beard growth?
A Healthy Diet
We have good news for you: You can positively influence your beard growth through a healthy and balanced diet. These foods will help your beard get on the right track:
- Proteins: Nuts, turkey breast, cheese, meat, fish
- Fresh fruit and vegetables: tomatoes, broccoli, green cabbage, cauliflower, raspberries, pears, cranberries & co.
- Oatmeal
- Legumes (lentils, beans, peas)
- Vegetable oils (coconut, olive, sesame oil)
- 2 to 3 liters of liquid per day (e.g. non-carbonated water, herbal tea)
By the way: A special treat for your beard are B vitamins, especially vitamin B7 (biotin). The natural power substance supports your beard growth in two ways. Firstly, biotin draws all the essential nutrients for strong beard growth from food and transports them to the hair roots. In this way, it creates the foundation for our beard hair’s growth processes.
Secondly, it serves as a navigator for our hair roots. It helps them to read the DNA in the cell nucleus. Although it does not provide the exact blueprint for the new hair, in a way it holds out reading glasses to the hair root so that it can interpret the blueprint correctly. This is the only way the follicle knows what it has to do.
Reduce Stress
Have you ever noticed? During stressful periods, our beard often lets us down. Suddenly it looks thin and lifeless. Is this a coincidence? Unfortunately not, because stress is like poison for hair growth.
When the stress level rises, testosterone levels drop. And the lower the testosterone level, the less attention our beard growth receives. The body has more important things to do right now. It has to take care of survival matters. It puts more energy into vital functions such as pulse and respiration. The rest is slowed down.
But it doesn’t have to get that far. Don’t let the stress get so close to you. Your beard will thank you. Here’s how the anti-stress program works:
- Practice calm and meditative forms of sport and relaxation such as yoga, Pilates, mediation, autogenic training or progressive muscle relaxation.
- Make sure you get enough sleep. Ideally, you should allow yourself 8 hours of rest per day.
- Mild herbal teas such as lavender or sage help you fall asleep at night.
- Avoid caffeine and alcohol. They only drive the stress level up unnecessarily.
- Plan enough time with friends, family and acquaintances to recharge your social batteries.
- Find out what is good for you – whether it’s reading, long walks, funny series before bed or a hot bubble bath once a week. Because everyone has their own way of relaxing and recharging their batteries.
Exercise
Did you know that lack of exercise can inhibit our beard growth? That’s right, and that’s exactly why we should get out for some fresh air. It has been proven that outdoor exercise promotes blood circulation in our skin. And the better the blood circulation in the skin, the higher our testosterone level. And the higher the testosterone level, the busier the beard growth.
Weight Training
Weight training and beard growth – do these two have anything to do with each other? Yes! In fact, they strongly correlate. Did you know that weight training increases blood circulation in the body, helps build muscle and thus influences your testosterone levels? And you know, testosterone is precious for a strong beard.
Sufficient Sleep
It’s not only a healthy diet and plenty of exercise that get our hair roots going. They also can’t get enough sleep. Because while we sleep, the cellular regeneration process is working at full speed. And the faster and more diligently the cellular regeneration process works, the healthier our hair growth. Of course, this applies not only to our head hair. Our beard growth also experiences a powerful growth boost. Well then, off to bed.
Proper Beard Care
When it comes to our hair, we naturally cherish and care for it. Because only with care and attention can we make it shine. With beards, however, things are often different. Men often don’t take care of their beard very carefully. Yet the right beard care is indispensable for a proper appearance.
As soon as the first beard hairs sprout, it’s time to nurture, nurture, nurture. From beard shampoos and beard oils to beard balms – the beauty market is now full of high-quality beard care products.
Good to know: Our beard also likes facial massages. No wonder, after all, the gentle, even movements have been proven to promote blood circulation in the skin. And the better the blood circulation in the skin, the stronger the beard hairs will grow.
It’s best to treat your facial skin to a relaxing massage twice a day – once in the morning and once in the evening. With light, rhythmic movements, let your fingertips circle over the skin. And the best thing is: the massage is not only good for your beard care, but also for your stress level. Try it out.
Peelings
Peelings are not to be used exclusively by women. On the contrary: men also benefit from the gentle peeling treatment. The fine abrasive particles carefully remove old skin scales and make life easier for your beard hair. Because with less excess skin scales, it’s easier for the hair to pass through the surface of the skin.
But that’s not all: peelings also stimulate blood circulation and promote the renewal of skin cells – a win-win situation.
Stopping to Shave
Shaving regularly stimulates beard growth? Let’s put a stop to this myth. Why don’t we try the exact opposite for a change: take a shaving break. For the next 5 to 7 days, let the beard hairs sprout.
The reason: when we shave, we demand a lot from our skin. Again and again, the sharp blades leave micro-injuries. And the more damaged our skin, the worse the beard hairs grow. No more, regeneration is now the order of the day.
Food Supplements
There’s no doubt about it: food supplements are certainly not miracle cures. Unfortunately, a few capsules, pills or drops do not make your dream of a beard come true. But these little helpers should not be underestimated – especially not biotin and silica.
Both active ingredients are a delicious treat for your beard hairs. They graciously accept these two tasty snacks. And thus: you shall be rewarded with visibly more vital hair. Little by little, your facial hair will appear more harmonious and even. Anything wrong with that?
But how much biotin and silica do our hair roots actually want?
- Biotin: 40 micrograms for adults, 45 micrograms for pregnant and breastfeeding women.
- Silica (silicium): 30 milligrams per day for adults
Products that Enhance Beard Growth
Do you suffer from irregular beard growth? Are you bothered by your patchy beard day after day? Then you should consider beard growth products. Although their effect has not been proven, many people are convinced of the benefits of these little assistants. May we present to you the most popular beard growth products?
Minoxidil
Minoxidil is very popular among beard lovers. It was actually intended as a medication against high blood pressure. But soon people discovered its positive effect on hair growth – a welcome side effect.
The concept: Minoxidil dilates the blood vessels. Thus, our hair roots suddenly have significantly more nutrients at their disposal. However, it has not yet been clarified whether the advertised miracle product also has a positive influence on our beard growth.
Unfortunately, minoxidil does not work overnight. On the contrary, you need patience. The first results should only be visible several weeks to months after the start of treatment.
Another disadvantage is the so-called shedding effect: here we suddenly lose a lot of hair at once. What happens? Quite simply, some hair switches from a shortened resting phase to the growth phase at the same time. The old hairs are pushed out and fall out. But don’t panic: The shedding effect is only temporary.
Good to know: It is recommended to get a doctor’s opinion when using minoxidil. Because, whenever we intervene with the natural processes occurring in our body, personalized advice from an expert pays off.
The Beard, a Useful Dating Assistant?
Would you have thought that a well-groomed beard can occasionally even help you find a partner? It is thought that facial hair is a very masculine trait that has a particularly attractive effect on women. This has even been scientifically proven.
Only recently, Australian researchers made a special discovery: beard growth is said to increase attractiveness to the female sex. Apparently, women can envision a longer and more serious relationship with men who have a dense beard.
A total of 8,520 women took part in the University of Queensland study. The concept: The test persons were confronted with computer-generated images of men. The same man was repeatedly depicted in a different way – sometimes clean-shaven, sometimes with a slightly stubbly beard, sometimes with a full beard.
Now the participants were asked to rate the individual men subjectively. Who do they find most attractive? At the same time, the women were asked to identify those men whom they considered particularly capable of maintaining a relationship.
The result is clear – so clear, in fact, that even the Australian researchers are surprised: Overall, men with beards were perceived by the female test persons as significantly more attractive than those without. At the same time, they were characterized as more suitable for relationships. Especially in long-term relationships, bearded men are far ahead.
The surprise: Men with a particularly dense beard were considered particularly capable of having a relationship. Men with light stubble, on the other hand, were able to establish themselves as the preferred partner for short dating phases.
Our Conclusion
A full beard is the epitome of masculinity. So it’s understandable that we want to give our desired body hair a booster. Especially for men with sparse beard growth, any accelerator will do.
They courageously reach for biotin, silica or beard growth products such as Minoxidil. They are also happy to embrace a healthy lifestyle with plenty of sleep, exercise and relaxation – the essential point is that the beard finally grows.
But one thing should not be forgotten: Although beard growth can be actively influenced, it also has a head of its own. After all, much is genetically determined – whether it is the length, the color or the density of our beard. Thus, we can’t have a say in all aspects.