Beards are awesome, except when they suck. And they only really suck when they’re itchy. 

Itchy beards can be the bane of your existence. You’re trying to grow a sweet beard, not look like you want to claw your face off. But the itchiest of beards are impossible to resist. You can’t help but itch.

Thankfully, they’re not impossible to fix. An itchy beard is a symptom caused by dryness: either dryness of the beard itself or dryness of your environment.

How to Fix an Itchy Beard and Beard Dandruff

Photo Credit: HBO

Fixing a beard with dandruff or a nasty itch is all about getting it wet. Not wet like walking-around-with-a-bucket-of-water wet, but wet like “not dry.” Keep it hydrated. Beards can dry out faster than a grapefruit in the desert sun given the wrong conditions.

Use these tips to give your beard the right conditions to thrive--and you’ll fix the itch.

Be Consistent: Practice Good Beard Care

Treat your beard like you treat the hair on top of your head: with regular care and attention. Recognize, too, that face hair and head hair are different beasts, requiring their own types of care.

For your beard, don’t use harsh, oil-stripping soaps or it will dry out. Treat your beard with balms and oils to keep the hair hydrated and healthy. Comb your beard.

Remember those Maybelline commercials with the smiling women splashing water on their face and throwing their shiny hair around? There’s science behind all that. Hydrated hair is healthy hair. Balms, oils, regular combing--all help to keep your beard hydrated, healthy, and most importantly not itchy.

Know Thy Climate

What environment do you live in? Here in the Rocky Mountains, it’s dry. High elevation living will do that. It’s not a matter of summer vs. winter, it’s an all-year-long dryness that you need to deal with.

For bearded dwellers in dryness, keep your living space humid and you’ll keep your beard humid. Get a humidifier from Wal Mart or Amazon. Make your living space help your beard, not hurt it.

Seasonal Advice to Stop an Itchy Beard

Humidity in the environment also affects your beard. Winter tends to be the driest season. If that’s the case where you live, you might need to go the humidifier route.

You may also be exposed to dry out out in the world rather than in your house. In that case, consider your beard care routine. Should you bring beard oil with you when you go about your day? If it means a healthier beard, yes. Should you double down on the beard balm when winter sets in? Yeah. When your environment changes, your beard changes, which means you need to keep up.

It’s All About Understanding

Understand what your beard responds to first and foremost. Then, know how to adjust to changes in your environment.

If you travel often, make sure you can keep your beard care consistent. If you live in a rough environment like the Rocky’s, know how it affects your beard health. If the season’s weather blasts your beard, know how to blast back. Understand your beard and understand your environment and you will be able to stop your itchy beard.

And ultimately, just test out different products and routines. The clean-shaven alternative is scary enough to justify the time and money investment.