Beard Vs Head Hair: Differences, Growth Rates, Tips, Facts

Welcome to beard vs head hair growth comparison!

Do you wanna know interesting facts about hair and you are wondering if your beard or your head hair grows faster?

If yes, you are in the right place!

Observing the differences between head hair and facial hair growth is a bit tricky. Only those who are heedful can successfully observe these little differences.

Do you know that our head hair can grow ½ to 1/8 inch a month and the average beard hair growth is ½ per month?

By learning different grooming tips and products used, one can question why some particular products should be used for beard hair than head hair.

Products such as beard balm, beard shampoo, and oil are made specifically for facial hair while products like sporty wave cream, sulfur 8 and apple hair cream, etc. should be used on head hair.

It is not alien to us that we have different kinds of hair on different body parts which have different roles but our focus has been specified to head hair and facial hair.

In this article, we will discuss everything you need to know about beard vs head hair.

Let’s get started!

Beard vs Head Hair Growth: Analysis

Facial or beard hair is only one type of body hair. Body hair includes chest hair, leg, armpit, arms, pubic, feet hair.

Body hair and consequently facial hair is different from head hair.

According to Wikipedia, androgenic or body hair follows the same growth pattern as the hair that grows on the scalp, but with a shorter anagen phase and longer telogen phase.

This explains why head hair can become really long while body hair is shorter.

Unlike the hair we have on other parts of our body, facial hairs are like an auxiliary sex stylemark in men and gents start to grow hair or their faces from pre-adulthood.

The hairs on the scalp are just like the hair on the face, and they grow in three stages but the facial hair has an extremely shorter developing stage.

On our head, we have 4 different types of hair.

Type 1 represents straight hair. Straight hairs have the tendency to become shiny and greasy because the oil can travel to the shafts quicker as compared to curly hair.
Type 2 represents naturally wavy hair and this type of hair is common in Africans and Mexicans. They have an alluring natural way and look thicker than straight hairs.
Type 3 represents curly hair. Curly hairs go straight when they are wet and as the hair dries it again becomes curly. Curly hairs have clear springy curls and can be easily styled.
Type 4 comprises extremely kinky or curly hairs. These hairs are coarse in texture but are manageable. They get damaged by chemical products and heat.

Beard Hairs, on the other side, develop in adult or pubescent males.

The skin under our beard is less oil and that’s why we use different products for head and face. Products for the head are used to remove the extra oil and if they are used on the beard, they can make the facial hair dry and harsh.

Facial hair is androgenic which means that the hair on our face is terminal hairs that grow on our body during and after puberty because of prominent changes in the levels of a particular group of hormones called androgens.

In terms of growth, androgenic hairs vary slightly from head hair. Head hairs grow in 3 stages at different speeds but beard hair grows faster than that because they don’t undergo specific stages.

Research shows that beard hair is thick and prone to breaking while head hair is not.

Beard hairs are quite tender while head hairs are not – facial hair delivers tactile sensory stimulation by channeling hair vibration and movement through the hair shaft to the sensory nerves within the skin but head hair doesn’t.

The follicular nerves on our face recognize supplanting of hair shafts and other nerves existing in the surrounding skin sense distortions and vibration of the skin across the follicles while this doesn’t exist in the head.

Terminal hair stretches the sensory feelings of touch outside the skin’s surface into the surrounding air and space, observing air movements as well as hair supplanting from contact by objects or insects.

All in all, facial and head hair are similar but they do have their differences. The average beard growth is higher than the head hair growth but the hair on the scalp can get really long while the body and facial hair cannot as easily.

Does All Facial Hair Grow At The Same Rate?

No, it doesn’t!

Hair that folks grow on their faces is a totally different brute than the head hair or somewhere else on the body.

Facial hairs are generally thicker and cover a wirier surface than the head. Scalp skin is slicker than face skin. The hair growth rate is different among individuals, also the age, area of the body, and hair length.

If we assume to begin from a shaved skin, the growth of our head hairs is about 0.35 mm per day which is 1 cm per month. On the contrary, our eyebrows grow a bit slow i.e. 0.15 mm a day (0.45 cm per month).

Body Hair Vs Facial Hair: Which One Grows Faster?

Hair growth varies in every person. For one man it will be faster but for the other, it will be slower and for some, it will be the same.

According to Pubmed.com, facial hair and body hair require high levels of testosterone and its conversion to 5-alpha-dihydrotestosterone while pubic and axillary hair follicles require much lower levels of the male hormone.

Sometimes, the slower growth of facial hair is because of the fluctuating testosterone levels in men.

All in all, a healthy body and good diet will help beard growth and you will get the opposite results because of poor health and poor diet. The 3 most important factors that affect hair growth in men are:

Blood circulation
Levels of testosterone
How easily testosterone is converted to DHT.

According to www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, testosterone converts to DHT by the action of the 5 alpha-reductase enzyme at these target tissues.

Facial hair and body hair grow at a similar rate because they both needs high levels of testosterone, according to research and studies.

Finally, less blood flow to the facial skin will lead to less nourishment for the hair follicles.

Does Facial Hair Grow Faster Or Thicker After Shaving?

No, shaving doesn’t change the thickness, growth rate, or color of the hairs. Shaving head hair or facial hair gives them a crude tip.

The tip may feel “stubbly” or coarse for some time as it grows out. Throughout this phase, the hair might be more prominent and perhaps look thicker and darker – but it is not.

This is just a myth that shaving your beard hair or hair or any part of your body will make it grow back quicker or thicker. This misconception is laid with the changes in puberty.

When young men shave their beards, the new facial hairs continually sprout up, presenting the illusion that it’s growing faster and thicker.

How To Make Beard Grow Faster and Thicker?

There can be no greater statement of a man’s virility than a thick, soft, and well-groomed beard. Waiting for faster beard growth can feel like watching a plant grow.

This may be frustrating and demands a lot of patience. The younger you are the harder and longer it may take for you to accomplish your beard goal. Men’s beard hair starts developing during puberty.

However, some men might never get a beard because of genetics and hormones. Your overall health impacts everything, including your facial hair. You can’t change your genetics but can improve the lifestyle habits that would make you healthier and help you get a fuller and thicker beard.

Exercise – it improves your blood flow, which stimulates the facial nerves and hair follicle growth. Stretch training and weightlifting will boost temporarily testosterone. Try adding variations to your workout. Testosterone levels fluctuate in men, rising in the morning and decreasing in the afternoon.
Beard growth supplements – several supplements are particularly aimed towards beard growth. As with diet, there is no magical remedy that will overrule heredity. If you can’t get all nutrients through the diet, taking a multivitamin or supplement complete with zinc and iron may be just as useful.
Washing, Rinsing, Brushing and moisturizing – keep your beard and skin underneath it neat, clean, and moisturized for a stunning appearance. Exfoliate your face to keep your pores open. Brush your beard daily. It will help to remove debris and dead skin cells from all over the hair follicle. It will also ebb ingrown hairs from existing below your beard. Leave-in conditioners are particularly designed for beard hair nourishment. It will cut down dandruff and your beard will appear full.

Keeping your beard moisturized helps it looks thicker. There’s no proof that using a particular regimen would thicken the beard hair.

As we have already said, in general, apart from genetics which affects beard growth very much over 80%, the 3 main factors that also affect facial hair growth are testosterone levels, blood circulation, and also how easily testosterone is converted to DHT.

The only things we can improve naturally is to boost our testosterone levels and our blood circulation. Even if this only helps about 10-15% it is worth it.

Still, anecdotal evidence highlights avocado oil and castor oil as solid beard thickeners. Rich moisturizers help in beard growth just like the leave-in conditioners, as they keep beard hair nourished and make it look thicker and lusher.

The beard growth rate and its fullness totally rely on genetics. DHT and testosterone also play key roles. Eating a healthy diet and doing exercise regularly can help your beard be healthier. Maintain good hygiene and get enough sleep for better hair growth.

Conclusion

Beard is similar to head hair but not exactly the same. Beard hair tends to have coarser and darker hair while head hair is mostly softer and lighter.

Head hair can grow more than beard hair if both are left untrimmed.

Beard hair grows slightly faster than head hair.

As a whole, body hair that includes facial hair is different than head hair. It starts growing after the replacement of vellus hair when puberty starts.

And…that’s it for today’s article. I really hope you found some useful information here.

If you have any questions or comments feel free to write them in the comment section below and we will be more than happy to answer.

Until next time,

Stay safe,

Tasos

Tasos Moulios

Tasos Moulios is the founder of Beardlong. He loves trying different beard and hair styles and blogs about them. The tips he shares come from his own experience and love for what he does.

Beard Vs Head Hair Growth: Which One Grows Faster?