Daccanomics
Beard is probably the oldest fashion accessory that has survived every fashion holocaust. It is probably one of the most controversial topics that is still debated to this day by many fashion experts.
Some suggest that beard popularity is a passing trend and will eventually fade away. While others argue that it will stand the test of time as it has before. But there is no doubt that a well-groomed beard is the epitome of modern-day sartorial style.
Beard is the ultimate manliest accessory that you can flaunt without shame. Not only beard gives you a more testosterone-infused look but can totally change the way you look. Beard is no longer a no-shave November ritual. A well-groomed beard is a style statement that speaks for itself.
But growing a full beard is probably not an easy task. While many men are just gifted with good genes, some of us don’t have the luxury to grow a luscious beard.
Instead, most of us end up with a patchy beard with sparse facial hair growth. A patchy beard can sometimes lower your self-confidence. Guys with full beards are considered more manly and dominant in their field. Society has set an unrealistic standard for men.
A patchy beard is nothing to be ashamed of and there is no need for fixing your patchy beard. You can see a lot of celebrities sporting a patchy beard in style. But it’s understandable if you want your beard to be thicker and fuller.
If you want to take matters into your own hand, we have some tips and tricks up our sleeves that can help you grow thicker facial hair and get rid of a patchy beard.
Sparse Facial Hair Growth
Most men can grow facial hair. Some can grow a full beard while others only grow whiskers. It is a fact that pulling off a patchy beard is not easy.
If you end up reading this article you probably have looked for a solution to fix your patchy beard. There are ways you can make your facial hair thicker, but you can’t grow new facial hair without a hair transplant. But as you won’t likely spend your fortune on getting new facial hair. For the sake of simplicity, let’s focus on home remedies that won’t cost much.
There are few hair growth products that claim to be effective in promoting new facial hair. Unfortunately, there is no medical evidence to back up these claims of facial hair growth. These products are highly debated but a lot of men have suggested effective results.
However, you can use some of these methods to make your beard look fuller and thicker. Before we begin let’s understand why do some men have a patchy beard.
What Causes Patchy Beard?
You have probably seen a lot of Asian men with patchy beards. There is a popular belief that men from Asian countries like China, Thailand, Japan, Indonesia can’t grow a full beard.
This is somewhat true. Men from Eastern Asian countries usually have weaker beard growth than that of Caucasian average genetics.
But it’s not just Asian men who grow patchy beards. If you have sparse facial hair it is probably due to genetics. There are multiple reasons why your beard might have bald patches in it.
Here we have identified some common causes of patchy beard growth.
1. Genetics
Our beard growth and other physical features mostly depend on our genes. Genetics plays an important role in determining our looks and even the color of our hair. Genes are passed on from generation to generation.
The rate at which our facial hair grows and the thickness of our beard also depends on our genes. If your ancestor had weak facial hair growth, chances are you will also have sparse facial hair.
But if your father or grandfather has a full beard you will also probably have a full beard. You need to be patient and let your beard grow for a while. Men have the most facial hair growth in their early 30s.
Earlier it was believed that genes were passed down from the mother’s side, but new scientific data suggests that genes can pass from either one or a bit from both.
2. Low Testosterone
There is a common misconception that men with a thicker and fuller beard have higher testosterone than men with less facial hair.
In reality, testosterone has very little to do with the thickness of your facial hair. The growth of your beard depends on how sensitive your hair follicles are to DHT.
Our facial hair growth is determined by an enzyme called 5-alpha reductase. It converts testosterone to dihydrotestosterone (DHT).
If you are low on testosterone or DHT then it’s likely that you will have a slower beard growth rate and sparse facial hair.
3. Unresponsive Androgen Receptors
Our facial hair growth actually depends on how receptive our hair follicles are to DHT. Sometimes even after having enough testosterone and DHT, your might have sparse facial hair growth.
The function of DHT is to attach to receptors on each follicle of your beard hair to make it grow. If you have poor sensitivity in your androgen receptor you will likely have less facial hair.
Think of the hormones as keys, and the receptors as locks. Even if you have plenty of good keys, it won’t help if the locks don’t work.
4. Poor Blood Circulation
Poor blood circulation on your face could be a reason for sparse facia hair growth. Some men have poor blood circulation around the upper lip area. Exfoliating your skin regularly can improve blood circulation which promotes facial hair growth.
5. Change In Lifestyle
A sudden change in your lifestyle can also influence the growth of your beard. A lack of vitamins and other nutrients can stunt beard growth. Also, if you have poor quality sleep or chronic stress you might see your beard turn patchy.
6. Your Age
Our age is an important factor when it comes to beard growth. Most guys began to develop visible facial hair around the age of 15. But the peak of beard growth happens between the age of 25-35. Men usually have sparse facial hair growth before the age of 25.
So if you’re under 25, give your beard time to mature and stop worrying about your patchy beard. There is a good chance that you will start seeing sudden beard growth after your 30s.
How To Fix Patchy Beard
Fixing your patchy beard is actually not that hard. You can maintain and groom your beard to make your beard appear fuller and thicker. Adding more volume to your beard will make your facial hair look less messy and well-groomed. Here we will discuss methods that will make your beard look fuller and strengthen your facial hairs to make it thicker. You don’t have to spend a lot of money to get rid of the patchiness in your beard.
1. Let Your Beard Grow
We often make mistakes when we are in a rush. Growing a beard takes time You can’t expect to grow facial hair overnight. The first thing you need to do when growing a beard is hiding your razor. Give your beard some time to grow. Growing your beard for 3 months will give you an idea of your overall facial hair growth and you will know if you have a patchy beard.
When it comes to growing a full beard, there are two elements of time to consider—your age and how long you’ve been letting your beard grow.
It is hard to resist the urge of trimming a beard especially when it looks patchy and unkempt. There will be times when your beard looks scraggly and terrible, but it is important to let your beard grow.
Letting your beard grow freely for 2 months can be a great way to identify which way the hair grows and where the patches are forming. Once you have figured it out you can decide on a beard style that will hide your bald spots and complement your face.
A full beard can help you hide the patches and make your beard look a bit more well-groomed.
It is important to let your beard grow for 2 months because our beard looks patchy in the first few weeks. Especially near the cheek area where the facial hair tends to grow slower than the rest of your face.
2. Keep Your Beard Trimmed
Before you blame me for this contradicting statement, let me explain myself. Now that you have grown your facial hair for 2 months you have a clear idea about the growth and thickness of your beard. You can clearly see if there are any bald spots or patchy beards.
You can trim your beard in the right places to minimize the patchiness of your beard. There are various beard styles that will help you hide the patchy beard. Maintaining a medium stubble instead of a full-grown beard is a lot easier as you don’t have to spend a lot of time hiding your patchy beard.
You can trim your beard carefully depending on where you have the most patchy areas. If you have patchy facial hair in your cheek areas you can trim it very short to make it hardly noticeable. It will aesthetically look natural even after you define the edges.
You can try the ducktail beard style or a medium stubble to hide your patchy facial hair.
3. Eat Food That Reduce Patchiness
While there is no food that directly affects the growth of your beard or promotes new facial hair growth, there are some foods that can improve the health of your hair.
Vitamins and nutrients are very essential for your beard growth and health. Without proper nutrients, your body can’t produce hormones that are responsible for facial hair growth such as, testosterone and dihydrotestosterone.
If you want a healthy beard you need to have a proper diet that improves the health of your facial hair. To get a fuller and less patchy beard growth you need to have an adequate amount of growth hormones.
There are few foods that can help you increase the levels of both of those hormones.
Here are some foods that can help you reduce the patchiness of your beard:
- Oysters – Oyster is rich in zinc and selenium. Both of these are important minerals that are essential for maintaining beard growth hormones.
- Sorghum – It is an ancient grain that has been shown in one study to increase the levels of an enzyme that produces DHT by 54%.
- Olive oil – In a study of Moroccan men, using olive oil as the main fat source for 2-weeks increased testosterone by 17%.
- Pomegranate juice – shown to increase the beard growth hormone; testosterone by 24%. Good for circulation too (which helps with patchy cheeks).
- Alfalfa sprouts – a study of men eating alfalfa sprouts showed significantly increased free-testosterone and DHT levels. Broccoli also had a small effect.
- Coffee – rich in antioxidants and magnesium, but more importantly it might raise testosterone and DHT levels, quite significantly even.
Don’t think that eating these foods will instantaneously give you a luscious beard and get rid of patchy facial hair. You need to add these foods to your regular diet. It will take some time to see any visible changes. Eating these foods alone won’t make much difference. So you need to follow other beard growing techniques to red rid of the patchiness.
4. Style Your Beard
A patchy beard often looks like a complete mess. While a well-groomed beard can be extensively charming, a patchy beard can be a trainwreck. This is why it is important to style your beard and keep it well-groomed.
Trimming your beard and defining the edges and necklines will make your patchy beard look more clean-cut and professional. Your sideburns should be perfectly trimmed so they match your beard and hair. Cleaning the edge around your cheekbones, jawline, nose, and lips will give you a sharper look.
A well-groomed beard can change your aesthetics totally and hide the patchiness of your facial hair. You can maintain clean lines by regularly trimming your beard and styling it daily with beard oil and a comb.
5. Microneedling
Microneedling is the insertion of very fine short needles into the skin for rejuvenation. You can use a derma-roller to create small micro-punctures or pores on your face. This can be used for treating and massaging your skin. Microneedling can treat acne scarring, reduce signs of aging and most importantly promote facial hair growth.
Although there is no medical evidence to back up this claim, some dermatologists suggest that micro-needling can activate dormant follicles – resulting in less patchy and thicker facial hair.
Dermaroller has a lot of micro-needles that prompt the body into a healing response which then increases the blood flow by pumping fresh oxygenated hormone-rich blood to your skin.
The effect of micro-needling has been tested multiple times and the results were surprising. Microneedling is significantly more effective for hair regrowth than any other product. It even works better than minoxidil and could promote new facial hair growth.
Fine Tuning The Patchy Beard
Even though you can’t produce new facial hair using over-the-counter drugs, there are steps you can take to make your beard appear fuller and thicker. There are ways you can adjust your beard to hide your patchy facial hair. Grooming your beard properly will add more volume and contrast to your beard.
Here are few ways you can style your beard to make it look thicker.
Manage Uneven Growth
It is not hard to hide the patchy beard on your face. Trimming your beard short will help you hide the patches. Most men grow patchy beards on the cheeks area. It is not necessary to trim your beard evenly. You can use a hair thinner on areas where your facial hair is patchy and trim the rest of your beard with a short clip. This way your patchy facial hair will be hardly visible and you can keep a proper full beard.
Condition Your Beard
A well-groomed beard is as important as well-groomed hair. Your beard can completely change the aesthetics of your look. It is the only fashion accessory that directly affects your appearance.
A well-groomed beard can ooze confidence as it is a part of modern-day sartorial style. Taking care of your beard is as important as taking care of your hair. If you have a full beard, it will probably start to look fuzzy and dry after a few weeks.
Using the right hair care product can make a lot of difference. Not only it makes your beard look more polished but also keeps your facial hair healthy. Using beard oil or beard balm can help you keep your mane healthy and clean all the way down to the follicles.
Exfoliating your skin twice a week will help you remove the dead skin cells and prevent dry skin. Not only it will keep your beard clean but will also stimulate your skin underneath. Exfoliating can unclog your pores and nourish your skin’s surface. It also promotes blood circulation which can encourage faster hair growth.
Using a mild facial cleanser will help you from scratchy beard and will add more volume to it. It will also prevent your facial hair from turning patchy. Cleaning your face with a mild cleanser can stimulate oxygen-rich blood which nourishes the skin’s surface.
