Why Beard Oil for Flaky Skin Is the Secret to a Healthier Beard

You constantly have white spots on your collar at the junction of your beard and your neck. Twice this year you've gone to other oils in hopes of a cure, and each time, they've lasted for about ten days, and then the flecks have reappeared in the same areas. That's where men typically begin to blame the brand rather than the technique, picking up a new, heftier bottle rather than asking "why didn't the previous one work?".

That most workouts overlook: Only beard oil for flaky skin works if it actually reaches the skin; and for most men, it never does. You're merely rehydrating a wet area that wasn't really dry to begin with, and the lower layer, which is producing the flakes is unaffected regardless of how much you apply. At the start of the afternoon, you're rubbing your shoulder without even realizing it – a reflex you didn't have a year ago. Thanks to this, almost all the "I've tried everything" complaints about beard flaking are actually due to this.

The key to avoiding the flaking is to get the oil past the hair.

The majority of bearded flaking isn't caused by moisture in the beard, it's caused by moisture in the skin that the beard covers. Even if the product is excellent, the flaking always comes back if the oil is not in contact with that layer. The more typical men put beard oil on their faces is to drop a couple of drops in the palm, rub them through their beard from the jaw line down and do this in 5 seconds. When the beard begins to grow longer than a quarter inch, this motion will not go near the skin nor will it touch the outside of the hair shafts.

That is why, despite having the same direction, the flaking is never even, but rather unevenly distributed. The oil is applied to hair that is not even dry, and the dryness in the follicles, which is the cause of the flakes, is left untreated session after session. As far as I can see, most guys think that their product is not working when in reality it simply wasn't delivered where it needed to go.

It's not a chemical fix. If you have a beard, divide it into 4 or 5 parts with a comb or your hands and do one part at a time as opposed to trying to brush all sections off at once:

• Do not apply to hair; apply to bare skin 3-4 drops per area.

• Massage each area for 20-30 seconds before progressing to the next area.

• Pass through the whole pass one time each day until flaking is evident.

The oil can be absorbed into the skin and enter the sebaceous glands beneath the surface—where it can really heal dryness—with skin contact. No matter how well you apply the oil, the amount that is absorbed by the beard depends on whether it's wet or dry.

The right timing of the Oil Application helps prevent Waste.

When beard is completely dry, the application of oil mainly rests on closed tight cuticles rather than penetrate. You have to use more product to get less results, and the flaking returns quicker since very little was applied to the skin the first time. This is typically due to guys toweling off completely, then, by habit, putting on their oil maybe 10 to 15 minutes later.

The habit seems quite natural but it's against the one time when your skin and hair are receptive to whatever you put on it. A dry cuticle is tight and dry skin is not quite as receptive as a slightly moist cuticle. The oil doesn't penetrate to the surface, so applying more oil does little alone.

Apply the oil immediately after leaving the shower, within 2—3 minutes of coming out of the shower, the beard is still wet but not dripping, 5—6 drops were applied the same way as outlined above in rows.

Moisture makes hair and skin slightly raised, creating an actual absorption window, rather than having to layer on top of itself. It's timing that alleviates how much oil gets in, but the kind of oil you use can sabotage your efforts all in itself.

It's Not Dry Skin — It's a Yeast The Right Oil Can Starve Out

Dryness is seldom the actual cause of the flaking if it worsens a week or two after changing to a flatter choice of oil. Malassezia is a yeast that lives on everyone's skin and eats the same fatty acids that are present in more viscous carrier oils, and is associated with beard flaking. Coconut oil is the most popular culprit, and it is one of the most popular “moisturizing” oils in the market, hence the reason why this is a very common mistake.

Men see that their beard is dry, they think that it needs to be fatter, and they just change to fatter oil without asking if the oil they are using is actually being absorbed or not. Those additional fatty acids aren't lying around — they're providing food for the yeast itself, and can even make already flaky follicles even worse. The same reasoning we discussed in the previous section, but with a negative twist to it: more product, but not as much as it is supposed to be delivered, and a wrong kind of product on top.

Use a non-comedogenic, lighter oil, like jojoba or grapeseed oil. Apply 4-6 drops daily for 48 hours using the same technique on the jawline first then on the sections.

Jojoba's composition comes close enough to natural sebum to help to moisturize the skin without providing the fatty acid content to which the yeast craves, that's why it works even on skin that is still recovering from a richer oil. It's important to state outright that this isn't in opposition to using oil for dryness, but rather, it's about the kind of oil. However, if you're undoing all this with your wash routine, it's not going to matter.

The rest of your routine isn't doing anything to support your barrier, and you're doing your part to undo it.You're doing your part to undo the barrier while the rest of your routine isn't helping.

Shaving your beard each day seems the sensible thing to do, but you're removing the same oil barrier you're trying to create each day. Although it is often blamed on the oil, more flaking during the afternoon indicates a problem with washing rather than oiling.

Using regular shampoo or body soap every day will strip the skin of its natural oils, making the skin lose its balance and resulting in quick turnover of new skin cells, which will flake off faster. Those who wash the most have the worst flaking because the skin never gets a "chance to heal" between washes. It's a hygiene issue, which is addressed by other hygiene, which causes the issue.

Reduce the washing, but not the oil:

• Only wash 3 times per week with a mild non-sulfate wash for beards.

• Do not use hot water; use lukewarm water.

• Dry the beard, not by rubbing, in 15 seconds or less.

This does not only prevent the oil barrier from being damaged, but it also removes dirt and product build-up that a wash is designed to do. It may sound like another step in a long list of things you're doing right, but it's another step that allows for the buildup between the other steps you're taking.

A brush brushes dead skin twice a week which prevents it from piling up in a week.

No matter how you do or don't care for your beard, your skin's dead cells are constantly peeling away and if you don't brush regularly, these dead skin cells accumulate beneath your hair and won't fall off on their own. This accumulation is the reason why flaking seems to appear out of nowhere on a hot day, after a workout or whenever a week's worth of it has been wriggled out of your fingers.

It isn't a random occurrence on the skin's side, however, it appears that way because there is nothing taking out the accumulation between washes. The layers build up until they're released by heat or rubbing and start to fall all at once, hence the reason why a beard may appear great in the morning and start to flake by lunch.

Brush the beard two times a week with a soft bristle brush or a silicone scalp massager, gently sweeping from top to bottom and making sure you are not brushing too hard as to reach the skin, not just the surface hair.

This removes dead skin mechanically before it can accumulate to an extent visible to the naked eye, eliminating the randomness of flaking appearance. These five things do not individually solve the problem; only when they are practiced as a routine does the routine become a solution.

Create a chart of the entire routine.

None of this is solely due to a single cause: it's all because of five little habits that were all working against one another. You didn't use the wrong oil, you used the wrong amount of it in your wrong layer, at the wrong time, over a wash system that was all undoing.

The realistic routine involves folding the five pieces together rather than performing the five steps individually. You should brush your beard twice a week before washing it, wash it at most three times a week with a mild, non-sulfate wash and apply a lighter oil, a few drops at a time, according to beard length (3-6 drops per section), directly to the skin a few minutes after getting out of the shower. This is the whole system and nothing here takes any more time than a couple of extra minutes on days while you're already taking a shower.

Be patient and wait to see if it is effective. Most guys see a significant decrease in flaking after 7-10 days, a complete decrease in shoulder brushing after week 3, and complete normalization after perhaps week 6 when the turnover cycle of the skin restarts. When flaking sticks start to get red, greasy and itchy, that's no longer a regular issue — itchy or flaky skin areas like seborrheic dermatitis are best treated by a dermatologist, not an oil change.

But for all but almost everyone else, it's a matter of delivery rather than diagnosis. The oil was not the issue, the location was the issue. Recheck your collar in 6 weeks. The specks that appeared in the same location each and every day should be the thing you've ceased to consider.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can beard oil be used to cure flaky skin under a beard?

Yes, but not applied to the hair on the face, but rather to the skin beneath the beard. This is because oil permeating the strands from the outside generally does not cause dryness to the skin or follicle level that causes the hair to flake. Most men notice a significant reduction in flaking after 1-2 weeks when using the product directly on their skin, section by section.

How many times a week should one use beard oil in case of flaky skin?

Most beards will require one application per day, usually within 10 minutes of taking a shower when the skin is still moist. If your beard is longer or thicker, a second application midweek may be preferable, but don't use it every day to help dry out your beard faster.

Should one shave their flaky beard every day?

Yes, for most men, the oil barrier that they are trying to create with the rest of the regimen is being removed in the wash. If you wash three times a week with a mild, non-sulfate wash, you should be able to stay clean without causing additional flaking by removing sufficient natural oils before they are replenished by the skin.

The difference between dry skin flaking and beard dandruff is that the former is a desirable trait.The difference between dry skin flaking and beard dandruff is that the former is desirable.

Dry skin flaking is fine, little chunks and will moisturize and flush easily with regular moisturizing. Beard dandruff is normally associated with a yeast called Malassezia, accompanies slight redness or itching, and normally worsens in the event it is treated with a heavier oil. After a couple of weeks of moisturizing, yeast is more likely to be the problem.

How many days will it take for flaky skin to go away with the help of beard oil?

When properly oiled on the skin (not just the hair), most guys experience less flaking within 7-10 days. Full stabilization (skin's turnover cycle reset) takes closer to six weeks. If you get stuck at that point, it typically is a result of the oil type and/or wash frequency not being correct, but it's not an indication of a problem with the approach itself.

Does a shorter beard help in flaking?

It can help indirectly because a shorter beard will make it easier for the oil, brush and cleanse to be able to reach the skin. But by itself it will not solve the problem, either — if the beard is shorter, but the same bad routine, it will flake again in a similar amount of time. It's a step toward support, not a solution.

How often do you need to brush a beard to keep it from flaking?

These dead skins are typically removed every two days for a couple of minutes at a time, and don't need to be removed until they are visibly noticeable. Excessive scrubbing will not help and may cause skin that is already exfoliating or yeast-overgrown to be further irritated.