Beards are all the thing for men around the world lately.
Razor companies have even seen stock market declines due to the popularity of beards for men as they pray for ‘peak beard’ in our culture.
Maybe this will move the meters on the popularity of beards a little as scientists have drawn the conclusion that men’s beards are full of bacteria.
A recent study by Swiss scientists found there were more germs harbored in a beard’s whiskers than dogs carry in their fur.
The study found all the beards sampled were rife with bacteria, and almost 50 per cent carried bugs harmful to human health. The dogs tested showed much lower levels of microbes.
The study was originally aimed at determining if humans were at risk of picking up a dog-borne disease from an MRI scanner used by vets.
Researchers took swabs from the beards of 18 men and the necks of 30 dogs, across a range of breeds, and compared the results.
They found “a significantly higher bacterial load” in specimens taken from the men’s beards.
After the MRI exams of the dogs, the scanners were disinfected and showed a ‘significantly’ lower bacteria count compared with levels seen when used by humans.