To outsiders looking in, a fully-grown beard can serve as the ultimate social symbol of a carefree man. Contrary to popular belief, however, rocking a beard isn’t as maintenance-free as it seems. Like the hair on your head, negligence or a lack of proper care can lead to some unsightly flaky problems like dandruff. With the help of beard oil products, you can avoid this common pitfall and keep things under control.

The Science of Beard Care

So how does beard dandruff even happen in the first place? Well, it’s pretty easy actually. As we’ve discussed, the hair on your face whisks moisture away from the skin underneath. Without the necessary moisture, your skin gets flaky, and these flakes materialize in your beard. In some cases, the dead skin cells you would normally wash away from a clean-shaven face get stuck in hair shafts. On top of unsightly dandruff, you could end up with painful irritation and hair bumps.

Also, sebaceous glands lie at the root of each beard follicle. The glands produce their own natural sebum oil, but as your beard starts to grow, it requires more and more sebum oil to stay moisturized. Your sebaceous glands don’t grow with your beard, so unfortunately, they cannot produce enough sebum oil to keep your beard moisturized without outside assistance.

An even more scientific explanation about beard dandruff, or seborrheic dermatitis as it’s known to our scientist friends, is that a yeast called Pityrosporum ovale lives on our skin. Combined with factors like cold weather or stress, this yeast causes the skin to flake off. The skin’s daily exposure to ultraviolet light slows the growth of this yeast and therefore prevents the constant flaking. But the beard blocks the ultraviolet light and allows your skin to flake up a storm.

Yes, it sounds pretty crazy and technical to us too. The right beard oil for men allows them to avoid all this beard dandruff talk.

Avoid The Pitfalls Of Dandruff With Beard Oil

Beard oil products not only hydrate your beard but also the skin underneath. Whereas a generic over-the-counter moisturizer isn’t built tough enough to get through your beard hair, beard oil effectively achieves double duty with deep moisturizing ingredients that stop those flakes from pushing through. It’s best to wash your face with a gentle cleanser first before applying the beard oil. This ensures you wash away any dead skin cells.

For best results, you don’t need to use a tremendous amount. Simply drop a dime-sized amount of beard oil in your palm, rub your fingers through to warm it up, and gently massage it into your beard. Much like a shampoo or conditioner for the hair on your head, the moisturizing properties of the oil go straight to the follicle. With the right, soothing formulation, like The Architect Sandalwood and Vanilla Beard Oil (which utilizes anti-inflammatory ingredients such as sweet almond, grape seed, jojoba, cedar, & sandalwood) you’re fighting dryness and irritation at its source.

As an added bonus, a great time to style and touch up your beard is right after applying this vanilla beard oil. Now that your beard hair is soft to the touch, it’s a great time to comb through it and ensure it’s tangle-free.

Before you even think about reaching for that drugstore beard shampoo, try out beard oil products like The Architect Sandalwood & Vanilla Beard Oil, The Alchemist Tea Tree & Peppermint Beard Oil, or The Composer Eucalyptus Beard Oil for a fresh scent that keeps both your beard hair and the skin underneath the facial hair in great condition.