Good beard oil is very important if you want to keep your beard looking good and healthy. However, depending on the type of your beard hair and ethnicity (African-American, Caucasian, or Men from Asia), you will need to be very careful about the oils you apply to your beard. I did some digging to find out the benefits of avocado oil to the beard.
Avocado oil is good for both beard grooming and growth. Avocado oil boosts the levels of beard growth-stimulating hormone testosterone. When topically applied avocado oil will penetrate your facial hair and moisturizes it, softens it, add strength to your beard, control frizz, add shine, and protect your beard from heat and sun damage.
However, as a word of caution beard growth is stimulated by testosterone and DHT. If your levels of these hormones are at the recommended levels.
Increasing testosterone levels will not have any change on your beard growth goals. At this stage, you can only use avocado oil for grooming your beard.
Related: Coconut oil for beard
Table of Contents
What is avocado oil?
Avocado oil is extracted from the avocado fruit itself. It contains both monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats which are both helpful to the body.
Additionally, monounsaturated fats absorb in the body much better as compared to polyunsaturated fats.
Since avocado oil has both, it makes it a good oil for the beard, especially if your beard is dry and the skin beneath it is dry.
Avocado oil also contains a lot of vitamins that will nourish your facial hair and make it healthy for improved growth.
Who should use avocado oil
The first thing before using any beard product is understanding the texture and type of your beard. Otherwise, you may end up causing more harm than good when you use the wrong product.
The most important aspect to understand is the porosity of your beard. This aspect will dictate how good products will absorb into your facial hair and which oils are best suited for your beards.
The porosity of your beard is its ability to absorb moisture, and it is classified into low, high, and medium porosity.
High porosity beard absorbs a lot of moisture, while low porosity absorbs very little moisture and needs a lot of moisturizing, while medium porosity absorbs average moisture.
Luckily, avocado oil is good for all beard porosities, and most importantly the low porosity beard which is most common among men of African descent also referred to as 4 c beard.
Benefits of avocado oil for beard
Boosting Beard growth hormone
Avocado oil is rich in zinc and vitamin E, these two minerals have been proven through research
to increase the levels of testosterone in the body.
Testosterone and DHT, combined with genes [androgen receptors] are responsible for beard growth.
Having low levels of these hormones can lead to stunted or no beard growth.
However, if you have enough levels of zinc and testosterone in the body, consuming more zinc-rich foods to boost testosterone will not make any difference in your beard growth.
Moisturizing facial hair
One of the most important aspects that should never be taken for granted if you want to keep your beard healthy, promote growth and length retention is keeping it moisturized.
One of the best ways of keeping your beard moisturized is by the use of natural oils that can easily penetrate the facial hair shaft and oils that can seal in the moisture.
The lightweight nature of avocado oil makes it a good candidate for moisturizing your beard.
Avocado oil will penetrate into your beard cuticles due to its high levels of monounsaturated fats.
Research shows that monounsaturated and saturated fats absorb hair much better as compared to polyunsaturated fats.
Applying a penetrating oil such as avocado oil, coconut oil, and shea butter and then following it up with a sealing oil such as castor oil, grapeseed oil, and argan oil and olive oils will ensure your beard is well moisturized for the day or night.
Prevent beard dandruff
Flaky skin is one of the causes of dandruff either in your scalp or skin beneath your beard. Dandruff is also caused by fungi and bacteria.
The moisturizing and lightweight properties of avocado oil will help you fight dandruff caused by dry and flaky skin.
Avocado oil does not only penetrate your beard, it also penetrates the skin beneath, keeping it well moisturized.
Fight frizzy beard
A frizzy beard is a result of a lack of moisture. As already stated above, avocado oil is a great moisturizer, especially when followed up with sealing oils.
Given that lack of moisture leads to a frizzy beard, using avocado oil on your beard religiously will protect your beard from frizz and split ends.
Strengthens beard and add shine
Based on this study, avocado oil has mineral oils which when topically applied on the hair strands will aid in sealing the hair cuticle cells and prevent breakage of your beard.
Avocado oil is also loaded with vitamins A, B, D, and E that will penetrate your facial hair and add strength inside out. These vitamins also add elasticity and shine plus contribute to softening your facial hair.
How to use avocado oil on your beard
The best time to use avocado oil is after washing your beard with warm water, especially if you have a low porosity beard. Warm or lukewarm water will help open up your beard cuticles making it easier for avocado oil to penetrate.
What you will need
- Avocado oil
- Coconut oil
- Grapeseed oil, or castor oil, or shea butter
After washing your beard, be it with shampoo or water only, apply a mixture of avocado oil and coconut oil. These two oils will penetrate your facial hairs’ shaft and moisturize it from the inside.
Follow it up with either castor oil, shea butter, or grapeseed oil, these oils are great sealant and will seal in the moisture both in your beard and skin beneath.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does avocado oil clog pores? Avocado oil does not clog pores, it has a comedogenic rating of 2, the closer to zero the comedogenic rating of an oil is the better it is for oily and acne-prone skin. Therefore you can use avocado oil even if you have oily, acne-prone skin.
Does avocado oil go bad quickly? Generally, avocado oil does not go bad quickly, since one of the components of avocado oil is vitamin E that has been proven to increase the shelf life of the oil. Vitamin E prevents the oxidation of the oxygen and light on the natural essential and carrier oil especially those that have polyunsaturated fats.
Conclusion
Avocado oil is loaded with several benefits for the beard from beard grooming to promoting beard growth. For those who have been diagnosed with low levels of testosterone, incorporating avocado with other beard-friendly fruits will help you boost your levels of testosterone.
For men of African descent who tend to have a curly, dry, brittle, and coarse beard. Avocado oil will help you keep your beard strong, moisturized, and shiny.
Follow the steps outlined above to rip the full benefits of avocado oil. It is clear that avocado oil is a great choice for those looking to grow a beard and who have been diagnosed with low levels of testosterone. Or anyone who has already grown a beard and they are looking to moisturize add shine, soften, prevent dandruff, control frizz, and add strength to their beard.
