The Feeling:
“There's nothing quite as frustrating as cleaning up with a close shave, only to suffer from razor burn or skin irritation.”
Agreed? Okey let’s examine what it’s this, since knowledge is power with my experience and of some of my family and friends (Also google worked) let’s understand this.
The Scientific Explanation:
Pseudofolliculitis barbae , better known as, "razor bumps", also known as PFB occur on the faces of men with coarse, wiry, curly hair . Mediterranean, Jewish, African descent, and other peoples who have naturally coarse or tightly curling hair can get 'razor bumps' in their beards.
"These razor bumps appear when beard hairs, most likely around the neck area, curl as they grow and burrow into the skin again (like a loop-back). leading to an inflammation reaction"
The true is that PFB is most common on the male face, but it can also happen on other parts of the body, and also on women where hair is shaved or plucked, especially areas where hair is curly and the skin is sensitive, such as genital shaving (more properly termed pseudofolliculitis pubis or PFP).
PFB can be divided into two types:
The extrafollicular hair is a hair that has exited the follicle and reentered the skin.
- The transfollicular hair never exits the follicle, but because of its naturally curly nature curls back into the follicle causing fluid build-up and irritation.
PFB can make the skin look itchy and red, and in some cases, it can even look like pimples. These inflamed papules or pustules papules or pustules can form especially if the area becomes infected.
How it happens?
Shaving sharpens the hair ends, making it easier for them to penetrate the skin, and of course cause infection, like many needles in your face.
Ingrown hairs form after the hair has been cut or otherwise removed below the skin surface. As the hairs grow, they curl over within the follicle and fail to exit to the surface. The result is an unsightly, "bump" on the skin.
Some razor bumps also form when a growing hair exits the follicle and bends back towards the skin surface. When these sharp, shaved edges of coarse hair touch the skin surface, they burrow back into the skin causing puffy, pimple-like bumps to appear.
Razor bumps itch, burn, can cause scarring, and make shaving virtually impossible (Maybe you already noticed this).
How bad they can get?
How to get rid of them?
To Be Honest: If there were a method effective for all men and I knew it, probably I would go for a patent and get rich, and of course won’t publish for free on this blog. THERE’S NO UNIVERSAL METHOD.
- Many men have resorted to depilatory creams which seem to work significantly better than blades. However, some depilatories, if not used correctly, may irritate the skin.
- There are the ones that use shaving powders (a kind of chemical depilatory) to avoid the irritation. Others may use a razor with a single blade or special wire-wrapped blade to avoid shaving too closely. Some men trim or grow a beard instead of shaving. In severe cases, some men get electrolysis, laser hair removal, or use exfoliating products to minimize PFB.
2) Let the beard grow!
An effective prevention is to let the beard grow. Once the hairs get to be a certain length they will not grow back into the skin. For most cases, totally avoid shaving for three to four weeks until all lesions have subsided, while applying a mild prescription cortisone cream to the involved skin each morning.
Notice: Cortisone-based creams have been available for some time, but many cannot be used long-term due to blood stream absorption and other side effects.
The Even Day’s Method
Shaving every other day, rather than daily, will improve pseudo-folliculitis barbae. If one must use a blade, water soften the beard first with a hot, wet washcloth for five minutes.
Get Surgery! (Kind of)
- High Budget
Electrolysis and laser hair removal should be considered when all else fails, but these are expensive and take repeated visits. There is a very small risk of scarring. A few insurance companies will cover some or all of the cost.
Low Budget
A few friends of mine have found that the only way to remove these irritating bumps is by tweezing their faces. While this isn't very comfortable, they haven't discovered a better solution (Well at a lower price).
Get medication
Medications are also prescribed to speed healing of the skin. Glycolic acid lotion 8% (Alpha-hydrox, Neo-Strata, Innovcool, others) is effective. Prescription antibiotic gels (Benzamycin, Cleocin-T) or oral antibiotics are also used. Retin-A is a potent treatment that helps even out any scarring after a few months. It is added as a nightly application of Retin-A Cream 0.05 - 0.1% to the beard skin while beard is growing out. Use as tolerated, as it is somewhat irritating.
A few list of products that you can try
Other important considerations
Applying a shaving lotion after shaving will reduce the appearance of redness. This is also great for women after shaving legs, bikini lines and underarms.
Be sure to always use a clean blade when shaving with a razor. This can be best achieved by only using new blades and discarding ones that have been previously used three or more times.
If you use an electric razor, replace the rotary blades or foil after a few months. Of course if you're required to shave daily, you may have to replace them sooner. This can be a headache since many rotary blade components cost more than half of what the entire razor is worth.
While shaving with a handheld razor, always shave in the direction of hair growth. Most hair on men's faces, slant downward, so be sure to shave in that direction. This is also important around the neck areas since shaving against the grain is one of the main causes of pointy, sharp hairs that can burrow back into the skin.
Don't stretch your skin while shaving. Pulling your cheeks, chin or neck while shaving in order to get a closer shave, can cause darkness and discoloration of underlying skin tissue. This is especially true for light and fair-skinned Black men who have dark, coarse hair.
Watch what you eat. A lot of skin irritations may subside if certain foods are avoided. Fatty foods, foods containing oils, cholesterol and sodium, can make your skin more susceptible to damage while shaving.
Other Tips? Look at the post of Shaving 101.
