Men's beards are dirtier than dogs, according to new study

Is a man’s beard dirtier than a dog? Maybe, according to a new study.

Scientists at the Hirslanden Clinic in Switzerland took swabs from the beards of 18 male subjects and the necks of 30 dogs of different breeds. Facial hair was found to have a high microbial count on all the men, aged 18 to 76 — compared to only 23 out of 30 dog swabs having a “significantly higher” amount of bacteria.

What’s more, seven of the subjects’ beards had bacteria that was harmful to human health.

“The researchers found a significantly higher bacterial load in specimens taken from the men's beards compared with the dogs' fur,” said study author Professor Andreas Gutzeit, the Daily Mail reports. “On the basis of these findings, dogs can be considered as clean compared with bearded men.”

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