Cue Will Smith’s, “Summer, summer, summertime…time to sit back and unwind…”

Summer is here. Welcome to the number two beard killer—second only to women, but that’s an entirely different topic.

More beards are taken from us too soon in the months of June, July, and August than any other time of the year.  The onslaught of facial follicle homicide (FFH) stems from a common belief that maintaining a beard in warmer weather will make you “hot”.  It’s hard to argue against this logic, but I’m up for the challenge and hope to sway you to keep that beautiful beard all year long.

We all know that a beard keeps you warmer during the colder months.  So, it stands to reason that your beard will cause excess heat in the summer.  This is true to an extent.  The human head is the main source of heat escaping our body.  When it’s hot, and you are more active, your body creates excess heat that needs to leave the body.  Hair, including your beard, blocks the heat causing you to sweat. Our bodies account for this and, contrary to popular belief, lingering beard sweat actually causes a cooling effect when your whiskers are blowing in the wind.

PRO TIP:  Not a fan of beard sweat? Keep a water filled spray mister bottle on hand when you’re out in the heat so you can keep your beard moist. The water will have the same effect as beard sweat, and will keep you feeling clean and cool.

If you’re not buying into the summer beard keeping you cooler, consider these other benefits to rocking a beard in the summer:

• Added UV protection on your face from the harmful sun rays.
• Studies have concluded that body hair (beards included) have an increased growth rate in the summer months as compared to other times though out the year. This could be a result of many things, but in general most people are more active and live a “healthier” lifestyle in the warmer months.
• Beards can act like a filter, trapping pollen before it makes it way into your nose and causes allergies to flare.
• My personal favorite, you can impress people by creating epic beard pictures by whipping your head out of the water and ringing out your beard when you get out of the pool.

I won’t sit here and write about how awesome a beard in the summer is without informing you of #SummerBeardProblems.  Beards can get uncomfortable in the summer if not well maintained.  Increased activity, and higher temperatures cause sweat.  Sweat in your beard can make it feel dry, itchy and just plain irritable.  Lucky for you, all of these problems can be solved with quality beard products.  A good beard wash can be used everyday to help keep that beard clean and free of sweat/dirt without removing the natural oils on your face

PRO TIP: Regular shampoo will strip the natural oils in your beard. If you choose to use a shampoo instead of a wash designed specifically for beards, limit washing your beard to 2-3 times a week. After your beard is clean, applying beard oil and/or beard butter will curb the itch, re-hydrate your beard and keep it feeling soft all summer long.

Stay Fresh & Enjoy life

Fresh Beard of PA