Men’s beards carry more germs than dogs do in their fur, a study has found. Scientists looked at the levels of bacteria lurking in 18 men’s facial hair and 30 dogs from different breeds.

“The researchers found a significantly higher bacterial load in specimens taken from the men’s beards compared with the dogs’ fur,” Mr Andreas Gutzeit, of Switzerland’s Hirslanden Clinic, said.

The study was designed to find out if there was a risk of humans picking up a disease from dogs if they used the same MRI scanner as a vet, reports the Mail on Sunday. It found that all the men, aged from 18 to 76, had high microbial counts – while seven had bacteria which were hazardous to human health. Only 23 of the dogs had high microbial counts, with the rest being moderate.

When the MRI scanners were disinfected, researchers found higher levels of bugs after the men had used it. “On the basis of these findings, dogs can be considered as clean compared with bearded men,” said Gutzeit.

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