﻿Photo Credit: Toby Perkins

Myth: A beard should be full and complete within 2 or 3 weeks. Fact: It takes most men at least 2 to 3 MONTHS to grow a full beard.

Myth: If my beard has not filled in by the time I'm 20 years old, I will never have a full beard. Fact: Beards will continue to improve well into a man’s 20s and 30s and in some cases even into their 30s and 40s.

Myth: Beards make you hotter in the summer. Fact: Beards can have the exact opposite effect and actually make you feel cooler in the summer. Not only does it shade your face from the sun, it also cools as the sweat evaporates and you catch a breeze.

Myth: You should shave before a job interview. Fact: Most employers that don’t have strict facial hair policies will not discriminate against a man with a well-groomed beard. It can actually help the candidate’s chances at standing out and leaving a memorable impression.

Myth: Family, friends and co-workers tell me that my beard makes me look like a caveman. Fact: Most of the time people around you are objecting to the change in your appearance. They will say things to try to get you to change back to your prior look and to also reassure their own choices and beliefs. Over time the beard will just become your new look and identity.

Myth: A beard requires connectors between the mustache and goatee or it doesn’t look good. Fact: As bearded men, we are our own worst critics. In passing, you see a man’s beard as a whole and how it looks on that particular person. Look at Tom Hardy and Leonardo DiCaprio. We tend to be much more critical when standing a foot away from a mirror.

Myth: Shaving makes the beard grow back thicker. Fact: There is no evidence to support this. It can however, create the illusion that the beard is coming is more densely because the hairs are the same length and the light will hit them differently.

Myth: I can't grow a full beard because I have a bald area on my cheek(s). Fact: Most of the time within 2-4 months of committed beard growth, bald or thin areas will fill-in or fill-over completely. Your beard hairs grow at different rates so it will take some areas longer to fill in than others.

Myth: All parts of the beard should grow at the same rate. Fact: Going back to #8, hair on the cheeks often grows slower than the hair on the chin. Not to worry! The slower growing hairs will catch up and the beard can look completely full with sufficient time.

Myth: A beard will grow as long as a man lets it grow. Fact: A man’s beard has a genetically pre-determined terminal length. The time it takes to reach this length varies greatly from man to man, but the average for most men is about 2 years. This being said, a healthy life style along with proper care can help increase terminal length.

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References:

http://jefffsbeardboard.yuku.com/topic/17459/Eighteen-Beard-Myths

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jonha-revesencio/science-explains-why-a-beard-makes-you-look-hotter_b_6618142.html

http://health.howstuffworks.com/skin-care/men/shaving-tips/does-shaving-make-hair-grow-back-thicker.htm