The Real Pros and Cons of Beards & Moustaches (Facial Hair)

Facial Hair Vs Clean-Shaven

To Beard or Not to Beard

Introduction

Growing up in London in the 1970s and 80s, the only people seen wearing beards were professors, lumberjacks, hippies, or tramps (hobos), as well as those who had neglected their appearance for personal reasons.

In contrast, two of the world's most famous 'beard wearers' were Jesus Christ and Santa Claus - two figures who couldn't be more different from the individuals mentioned above, yet their beards are instantly recognisable and hold significant cultural meaning.

Fast-forwarding to the present day, beards have become highly fashionable, partly due to celebrities and hipsters (the modern-day hippies) who sport them. However, the culture, beliefs, and lifestyle of hippies and hipsters are not the same.

Facial hair is not limited to men alone. Some women are also capable of growing facial hair and have embraced it (as noted further down the page).

This 'article' like facial hair will 'tickle' your fancy!

In This Article

• The Pros
• The Cons - Do the Cons Outweigh the Pros?
• Men’s Beards Carry More Harmful Germs Than Dogs (Video)
• Bearded Lady - Rose Geil (Video)
• Why do Some Females Have More Facial Hair Than Others?
• Bare-Faced Bearded Facts
• 42 Famous People With and Without Beards (VIdeo)
• Jokes About Beards.
• The Great American Beard and Moustache Championship (Video)
• Famous Beard Quotes

The Pros of Facial Hair

Jeff Langum; At the fourth National Beard and Moustache Championships in New Orleans.

Pros

Save Time and Money

• Ditch the daily shave routine and kiss goodbye to expensive grooming products, or prepare for the possibility of even higher costs for specialised beard care items.

Stylish

• A beard is an extension of your personality. But be careful of the fine line between rugged and unkempt. A carefully trimmed and styled beard can make you look stylish and confident, while a scraggly and unkempt beard can make you appear careless and unkempt. To avoid crossing that fine line between rugged and unkempt, invest in quality grooming tools and products, and take the time to keep your beard well-groomed and tidy. Whether you prefer a short and sharp goatee or bushy beard, with a little effort and attention to detail, you can keep your facial hair looking its best and proudly show off your unique personality.
• Research shows that men with beards feel more masculine, and women find beards attractive. Just watch out for those with 'Pogonophobia', a fear of beards.
• Beards can make men look older (a pro and con).
• A beard can add a few years to your appearance, but proper grooming can make you look even better.
• Transform your look with a carefully groomed beard. With the right length and shape, you can give your face a more prominent jawline and become a better-looking man.

Up to 50% of a man's face can be hidden behind hair

Beards: Not just for hiding, but for transforming your best self.

Disguise

• I ran into an old acquaintance I hadn't seen in a long time. At first, he appeared to be in good health, a vast improvement from the last time I saw him, with his gaunt and sunken cheeks from his drug addiction. However, upon speaking with him, he mentioned that the appearance of his better health was solely due to his facial hair, which was concealing the still-present sunken hollow cheeks.
• A beard can change your identity, perfect for wanted criminals looking to hide their face or smooth-skinned criminals looking to grow a disguise.

American rock star; William Frederick Gibbons

This man is best known as the guitarist and lead vocalist of ZZ Top, would be unrecognisable without facial hair.

Hide a Multitude of Sins and Things

• Conceal tattoos. This guy I knew had a swastika tattoo on his cheek he later regretted. He still has it... concealed under his beard.
• A long, bushy beard will hide an overly large Adam's apple. Double and treble chins — and cover up a saggy turkey neck.
• Beards are a great way to hide shame and embarrassment (red-faced cheeks).
• Bushy beards are great for hiding illegal things, especially drugs, pills, rolled-up banknotes, flick knives, razor blades, lock-picking tools, and even a pistol (images below) can be concealed/tied to beard hairs/strands. Have you ever seen a police officer search a suspect's beard when being searched?
• I once knew a Jamaican guy who kept his cash in his socks, a cigarette behind his ear, and a spliff in his dreadlocks. Who knows what he had hidden in his beard!

• Some people wear long hair to cover up their big ears, and have long fringes to hide large foreheads. Others use facial hair to conceal spots, scars, lumps, and bumps. Even I would be sporting a beard if my face looked like a pizza's topping!

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Functional Colt 1911 miniature model:

Health & Beauty

• For anyone born with a 'cleft lip' or 'cleft lip and palate', a beard and moustache are ideal for concealing this.
• Men who are conscious of the size of their lips, needn't bother with expensive lip fillers or a lip reduction procedure to reshape or hide them when the right length moustache can do the job much cheaper. Moustaches, in particular, that are very bushy can completely cover up the top lip. This can be especially useful for those who are self-conscious about the size or shape of their lips. And a really bushy moustache and beard can make your lips totally vanish!
• Beards act as a natural sunscreen, keeping a man's face youthful. Not that you'll be able to see or feel under all that hair.
• Beards and moustaches (the bushier, the better) can help trap dangerous particles and pollutants, similar to a filter. Including nitrogen dioxide from vehicles — pollen, dust, and other harmful particles. But just like filters, they need to be cleaned regularly.
• Beards hide dimples (a pro and con) depending on what you or others prefer.
• Say goodbye to razor nicks and embrace the wild with your facial hair.

Miscellaneous

• In the winter, your beard will keep you warm, just like your hair. But be prepared for a hot and hairy summer.
• A beard can make men look aggressive and dominant (a pro and a con).
• If you have a well-known beard, consider shaving it off for charity and see how much you can raise from family and friends.
• If you’re considering becoming a firefighter, you’ll need to give up facial hair below the top lip. This is because wearing a facemask with breathing apparatus requires a clean-shaven face to ensure a proper seal and protect against dangerous chemicals.
• And last but not least, beards can cushion the slaps in a face-slapping competition. So, the bushier, the better.

Where there are PROS, there have to be CONS, but do the cons outweigh the pros?

Madison Rowley; an example of a 'Best Beard' World champion.

The Cons Of Facial Hair

Hides Facial Expressions

• The human face has more than 10,000 facial expressions. Many of them help communicate and reveal what we are thinking and feeling. It is harder to tell what all the emotions, feelings, and other expressions a full face of hair are expressing.
• Beards and moustaches that hide the lips make it hard or almost impossible for people who have difficulty hearing to understand what they're saying.

Potential Danger - Health

• The 'Center for Disease Control and Prevention' said, "Men's beards could make facemasks useless". Not ideal during a pandemic.
• Long beards can be a fire hazard, especially barbecuing or re-lighting hand-rolled cigs. "Do you Remember the Time" when Michael Jackson's hair caught fire while filming a Pepsi commercial because of the flammable hair products he used?
• Be cautious of sparks when using a metal grinder if you have flammable products on your beard. Hot sparks can also burn the eyes and skin.
• Very long beards have a greater risk of being caught up in moving machinery parts, similar to the dangers of wearing a long tie or scarf near moving parts.
• Facial hair is not ideal if you want to take up the profession of a fire breather, as it's a sure-fire way to become smooth skinned again!
• When some women fight, they love pulling hair, so beware bald men with a long beard!

Hygiene

• Eating and drinking can be challenging when consuming messy foods and beverages. Any bearded person will tell you they "keep it clean and wash it regularly", but that does not mean a beard will remain clean for very long. Any beard placed under the microscope will have sweat, food, drinks, spit, bacteria, urine particles present. And it has been scientifically proven that 50% of beards have traces of faecal matter. My analogy; it's much easier to keep clean 'floors and window roller blinds' than to clean 'carpets and curtains'.
• Any bearded person will tell you they "keep it clean and wash it regularly", but that does not mean a beard will remain clean for very long. Any beard placed under the microscope will have sweat, foods, drinks, spit, bacteria, faecal and urine particles present. And it has been scientifically proven that 50% of beards have traces of faecal matter. My analogy; it's much easier to keep clean floors and window roller blinds than clean carpets and curtains. That's why it's important to take extra care of a beard to keep bacteria at bay.

More 'Cons' continued below

Men’s Beards Carry More Harmful Germs Than Dogs

Partners

• Common complaints from women who've kissed men with facial hair: "I get a beard burn from making out with you". "Your lips are hard to kiss with your bushy moustache". "Kissing you with stubble feels like sandpaper against my skin". While others say, "I love it" and "a hairy face always tickles my fancy".

Employment

• Nobody wants to see hair in their food, and with 30,000 beard hairs on the face of the average male, that's 30,000 more reasons why people with beards who work with food should be required to shave or wear a beard and hair net.
• If you're looking to step into the ring as a professional wrestler, then listen up! The wrestling committee has some guidelines for you to follow. They recommend keeping your facial hair trimmed to a certain length. But, if you happen to have a thick beard, don't worry, all you need to do is cover it up with a non-abrasive facial covering or mask. Of course, if you have a legitimate religious reason for sporting a beard, you'll be exempt from this rule. (Rules vary from the types of wrestling to their country of origin).

Medical

• Facial hair makes it practically impossible to tell if you have a rash or other skin condition you can't see or feel.
• If you have been involved in an accident and injured your face, the nurse/surgeon will struggle to evaluate or treat the injury until they remove the hair. That will be time-consuming and could be painful. An analogy, a plucked bird (smooth skin) is better for chefs to process.

Miscellaneous

• Waking up every day and coping with messy morning hair is one thing. Now you'll be waking up with messy morning hair and facial hair.
• Shaving is an effective form of exfoliation because it removes the top layer of dead skin cells from the skin. This help to unclog pores, prevent ingrown hairs, and promote a smoother and brighter complexion. If you have facial hair, the dead skin cells are harder to remove through shaving, so they can accumulate and cause issues like clogged pores, ingrown hairs, and dullness. It is important to exfoliate regularly, regardless of whether you have a beard.
• "Itchy" is a word often used by beard wearers, although not all men experience an itchy beard, but for those who do it could be due to skin irritation from the beard hair. The new beard hair can scratch and irritate the skin, leading to itching and discomfort. Another reason, the skin under the beard can become dry and flaky, which can cause itching that is common in colder weather or lack of moisturisation. In addition, an itchy beard can also be from skin conditions such as psoriasis or eczema or an allergic reaction to beard care products.
• If you've got a beard that rivals Rapunzel's hair, brace yourself for potential hair-raising adventures! You'll need to be extra cautious when getting dressed in the morning, or you'll risk getting your beard tangled in your shirt (ouch!). And watch out for zippers — those sneaky little things have a knack for getting caught in facial hair (we've all been there with our body hair — it's like they have a personal vendetta against us!)

Why do some females have more facial hair than others?

Every woman's body is different, and what may cause excessive hair growth in one woman may not have the same effect in another. There are several factors can contribute to why some women grow more hair than others. These include:

• Hormonal imbalances can lead to an increase in the production of androgens (hormones), which can cause more hair growth in women.
• Inherited or transmitted from parents to offspring.
• In rare cases, women may grow beards like men due to a genetic disorder known as 'hypertrichosis (excessive hair growth), which causes excessive hair growth in areas where hair is not usually present or where hair growth is minimal.
• As women age, their hormone levels can change, which can lead to an increase in hair growth in certain areas.
• Certain medications, such as testosterone or anabolic steroids, can increase hair growth in women.
• Certain health conditions, such as adrenal gland disorders or thyroid problems, can also impact hair growth in women.
• Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS): Women with PCOS often experience hormonal imbalances, which can lead to increased hair growth on the face, chest, and back. (As shown in the video of Rose Geil below).

Bare-Faced Bearded Facts

• Hans Nilsen Langseth from Norway was fondly known as the 'King of Whiskers'. He had the longest beard in the world, which measured at 17-feet and 6-inches long. The woman with the longest beard is bearded lady Rose Geil.
• 'Movember,' run by the 'Movember Foundation' takes place every November to raise awareness of men's health.
• 'World Beard Day' is held on the first Saturday of September, with people from around the world gathering together with their beards.
• The 'Facial Hair Society' has a Facebook group brought together by their love of facial hair.
• In the Victorian era, they were obsessed with air quality, so doctors prescribed beards to act as a filter.
• In 1535, King Henry VIII of England (a beard wearer) introduced a tax on beards and forcibly shaved those who refused to pay. Emperor Peter I of Russia decided to follow suit in 1698 by making beard wearers carry a token.
• Sikhs refrain from cutting their hair and beards out of respect for the God-given form. This is considered a deeply spiritual and religious practice for many Sikhs.

42 Famous People With and Without Beards

Jokes About Beards

• 56% of men around the world sport a beard or facial hair. The rest work for them.
• Beards are fantastic. You don't see ugly men with a beard, but you always see ugly men without a beard.
• What is the difference between a man with a beard and a man without one? One man gets more respect. The other man doesn’t have a beard.
• I asked myself what would Jesus do. Then I grew a beard.
• I'm not sure if I like having a beard, however, it’s growing on me.

The Great American Beard and Moustache Championship

Famous Quotes About Beards

• He that hath a beard is more than a youth, and he that hath no beard is less than a man.' English playwright, poet, and actor, William Shakespeare.
• 'Life is like a moustache. It can be wonderful and terrible, but it always tickles.' American author, Nora Roberts.
• 'A decent moustache will intimidate a man, but a great moustache can frighten an army.' Author Anya Wylde.
• The best thing about a beard is, you can always look contemplative. Canadian-American actor, Joshua Jackson.
• Kissing a man with a beard is like going to a picnic. You don't mind going through a little bush to get there.' American comedian Minnie Pearl.