# Will I ever be able to grow a beard? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 4, 2004, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-i-ever-be-able-to-grow-a-beard/272923 "2004-11-04T04:56:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Kel\_Varnsen\_Latex\_Division](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/aeb1de/32.png) [@Kel\_Varnsen\_Latex\_Division](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kel_Varnsen_Latex_Division)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-i-ever-be-able-to-grow-a-beard/272923/1 "2004-11-04T04:56:40Z")
I am 27 years old and there is no way I could grow a bread. I can’t even grow a mustache or even side burns. Hell I can’t even grow one of those bad teenager style mustaches. Should I give up the idea of ever being a able to grow a beard or any real facial? I do have to shave every day but my facial hair is very patchy. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-i-ever-be-able-to-grow-a-beard/272923/2 "2004-11-04T06:27:07Z")
Do some research, but back when I used to read the beardboard (don’t know the address off hand) alot of people were trying Rogaine. I want to say they kinda got mixed results as far as new hair growth, but they all reported incredibly dry skin for a while. If might be an option for you. ---
**Author:** ![spingears](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@spingears](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spingears)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-i-ever-be-able-to-grow-a-beard/272923/3 "2004-11-04T16:29:59Z")
Will I ever be able to grow a beard? Not likely. Its a genetic thing and pretty much cast in concrete. ---
**Author:** ![Balduran](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/cc9497/32.png) [@Balduran](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balduran)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-i-ever-be-able-to-grow-a-beard/272923/4 "2004-11-04T16:39:15Z")
> [@Kel Varnsen - Latex Division](#): > > I am 27 years old and there is no way I could grow a bread. I can’t even grow a mustache or even side burns. Hell I can’t even grow one of those bad teenager style mustaches. Should I give up the idea of ever being a able to grow a beard or any real facial? I do have to shave every day but my facial hair is very patchy. Well, I guess I’m one up on you. I can grow a bad teenage moustache. I’m 32. ---
**Author:** ![Chastain86](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Chastain86](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chastain86)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-i-ever-be-able-to-grow-a-beard/272923/5 "2004-11-04T16:41:46Z")
Hey, man, I feel your pain. I can grow facial hair, but it’s nothing less than unsightly. You could always consult a dermatologist if you really want The Straight Dope. I did. There is a specific kind of hair loss that prevents people from growing facial hair, called _alopecia areata_. If your facial hair is excessively patchy, it’s possible you have something along those lines. It’s really nothing to be worried about – IIRC, Keanu Reeves is afflicted with it – but it’s possibly something to mention to your derm. Heritage plays a pretty big role in it, too. My grandfather was a full-blood Native American, and I suspect that’s got something to do with it. ---
**Author:** ![Chastain86](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Chastain86](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chastain86)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-i-ever-be-able-to-grow-a-beard/272923/6 "2004-11-04T16:43:02Z")
Besides, cheer up! There’s always a merkin to consider. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-i-ever-be-able-to-grow-a-beard/272923/7 "2004-11-04T17:47:07Z")
If you’ve got any Native American blood in you, then it’s probably genetic. Back in college, I had a hispanic friend who was 1/4 indian. IIRC, he only shaved about once a week. His beard was very patchy and looked terrible. ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-i-ever-be-able-to-grow-a-beard/272923/8 "2004-11-04T22:59:37Z")
I can grow a bad teenager mustache. I could too when I was an actual teenager. Nothing changed. I don’t think there’s much hope for you. By the way, I’m perfectly happy with that. I assume (perhaps wrongly) that if I had a hairy face, I would have too a hairy body, chest, etc… something I would really dislike. Besides, shaving is extremely easy. No need for shaving foam, and I use a couple razor blade/ month or so. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-i-ever-be-able-to-grow-a-beard/272923/9 "2004-11-04T23:10:05Z")
At 27, I can perhaps grow a bit more than a teenage beard, i get a bit of growth directly under my lower lip (few enough hairs to probably easily count, though), some chin stubble and the occasional soft ‘longhair’ on my neck. My sideburns are hilariously inadequate. I once didn’t shave them for about 2 weeks, just to see. I still had to lean in to the mirror to even see the hair at all. I’m not complaining, though. I shave every two to three days, mostly for the 'stache. My annual razor and blade budget is probably about $20. To compare, I have a silly patch of hair on my chest about the size of my hand. My arms have hair but its quite light colored and soft. Moving down to my legs (let’s keep this rated PG, hmm?), my thighs have some dark hair and my calves/shins have reasonable coverage. My father’s legs are, heh, pretty bald. ---
**Author:** ![Jpeg\_Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/4bbf92/32.png) [@Jpeg\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jpeg_Jones)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-i-ever-be-able-to-grow-a-beard/272923/10 "2004-11-04T23:42:06Z")
**jnglmassiv** , sounds just like me too. Except I don’t even have chest hair. I’m 30. I’ve always envied the swarthy. But I am definitely a man, really I am. I’ve even reproduced. ---
**Author:** ![chaoticbear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@chaoticbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chaoticbear)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2004, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-i-ever-be-able-to-grow-a-beard/272923/11 "2004-11-05T00:57:54Z")
I find this weird. I have a (slightly more than) moderately hairy… almost everything. I also have these weird, up to 1 inch long hairs that have started growing out of my shoulders and and upper back over the last few months. I call 'em “arm pubes” because that’s what they almost look like. But my facial hair just isn’t there. Sure, the sideburns I’ve had for a few years, but all my face does is connect sideburns to under-my-chin hair. Which is useless! That’s not a beard, that’s looking retarded. And I’m sad, because I love beards. ☹ Oh well… I still have chest hair/arm hair that’s STILL growing in. They lied when they said that it would be done by the end of high school.