Beards and cold weather seem to go together. Many people actually think beards are thicker and grow faster in winter. We’re here to break this theory down.
The Stages
Hair grows in cycles. The length of hair is controlled by the anagen phase. It doesn’t matter what season it is, this phase period is determined by genetics and hormones. The catagen phase follows this phase. Once it starts, the outer part of your hair roots are cut off from the blood supply so your cells do not produce any more of that one hair. This lasts about three weeks. The last phase is the telogen phase. In this phase, the hair is now dead down to the root. This is when your hair easily falls out.
What The Phases Mean
The overall growth rate on your head doesn’t change much from month to month. It doesn’t seem to care what season you’re in. The thing that does change is the density of your hairs in the growth phase, the anogen phase. This phase can actually last from two to seven years on your scalp. This phase only lasts about 45 days on your hair. We’ll get into that later. The peak percentage of hairs in the telogen, or the phase where your hair falls out, also changes. The main thing to remember is that about 90% of your hair is in the growth stage. Only 1-2% is in the catagen stage. About 10 to 14% is in the telogen phase.
What This All Means
The crazy thing is that beard growth actually maximizes in summer months, not winter months. Usually the growth rate of a beard peaks in June or July. It is at its lowest point in January and February. Men are usually more active in the summer months. They’re usually outdoors a lot. This means a boost in Vitamin D from sunlight along with hormonal changes and melatonin secretion could boost testosterone. This extra level of testosterone creates a sex hormone called dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Your hair follicles react to DHT in different ways. Many times the hair follicles are stimulated by DHT causing an increase in growth.
Bald Men
So why do bald men seem to grow the best beards? It’s interesting to note that DHT is a major contributor to male pattern baldness. The scalp reacts differently to it than facial hair. Many times bald men are just able to grow a thicker beard than men with a full head of hair.
The thickness of a beard really has nothing to do with the seasons. It’s mostly due to genetics and hormones. Many men just really enjoy a thick, warm beard in those cold months
