Men who don't wash their hands after visiting their bathroom have awfully dirty beards, researchers say

May 4, 2015 11:19 GMT  ·  By

As part of a recent investigation, specialist John Golobic at Quest Diagnostics in New Mexico, US, and colleagues tested the beards of a group of volunteers in search of bacteria and other contaminants. 

The researchers found that, as neatly groomed as they might be, some beards can, in fact, be dirtier than toilets. “There would be a degree of uncleanliness that would be somewhat disturbing,” John Golobic said in a statement.

True, the human body is no stranger to having bacteria living on and inside it, so the fact that all beards hide such microorganisms wasn't exactly a surprise for the Quest Diagnostics researcher and his team.

What shocked them was that some of the beards they studied contained enough bacteria to force disinfection if found in a city's water system. Besides, some beards even had trace amounts of poop on them.

The scientists explain that, to avoid getting their beards dirty, guys should always wash their hands after visiting the bathroom, scrub their facial hair on a regular basis and keep their hands off their face at work and at home.

“I'm usually not surprised, and I was surprised by this,” John Golobic said in an interview, as cited by Mirror. “Try to keep your hands away from your face, as much as possible,” he added.