Well, science has confirmed what beard haters around the world already knew – beards are gross. According to a recent study that focused on the microbial content of beards, it seems they’re actually dirtier than dogs.
Scientists wanted to know if an MRI scanner used by both doctors and veterinarians could transfer dog-borne disease to humans. What they found was worse than they thought.
After swabbing the chins of 18 bearded men and the fur of 30 dogs, they found the dogs were essentially cleaner. The men were aged 18 to 76 and there were a variety of different dog breeds tested.
While 23 of the dogs had high microbial counts, all of the men’s facial hair had significant amounts of bacteria. The other 7 dogs had moderate amounts of bacteria.
Even worse, half of the beards had bacteria that were particularly harmful to humans. Andreas Gutzeit, a professor at Switzerland’s Hirslanden Clinic, told The Daily Mail, “The researchers found a significantly higher bacterial load in specimens taken from the men’s fuzz compared with the dogs’ fur.”
Yikes.
Those with beards, however, claim that the findings are discriminatory.
Yes, there is such a thing as the Beard Liberation Front, and its founder has a problem with the study. His name is Keith Flett, and he says that beards can’t possibly be that bad.
“I think it’s possible to find all sorts of unpleasant things if you took swabs from people’s hair and hands and then tested them,” he said. He added, “I don’t believe that beards in themselves are unhygienic.”
He didn’t stop there, however, further adding that any negative articles about them are “more about pogonophobia than anything else.” Pogonophobia is the irrational fear of beards.
Flett may not be entirely incorrect, as studies in the past have found much of the same bacteria on skin. Still, beards are very polarizing features and their cleanliness being compared to that of dogs is not helping their case.
As Professor Gutzeit said of the study outright, “On the basis of these findings, dogs can be considered as clean compared with bearded men.”
Germs are everywhere, and you really can’t avoid coming in contact with them. So, whether you’re cuddling with your dog or a man with facial hair, there’s apparently little difference in terms of cleanliness.
