Study: Beards are filled with bacteria and 'as dirty as toilets'

There may be a lot more hairless faces after you hear this. Turns out men's beards are shockingly dirty.

>> UPDATE: Is your beard really full of poop? Probably not

According to a new study, beards contain just as much, if not more, fecal bacteria as a toilet. KOAT 7 reports that microbiologist John Golobic, of Quest Diagnostics in New Mexico, swabbed a number of beards searching for bacteria.

‘I’m usually not surprised, and I was surprised by this,' said Golobic.

>> PHOTOS: Tell these celebrities their beards are dirtier than a toilet

While some beards contained normal bacteria, others contained fecal matter. Although none of the levels were enough to cause illness, Golobic says "there would be a degree of uncleanliness that would be somewhat disturbing."

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Your best bet if you're pro-beard: lots of hand washing, a thorough beard scrubbing, and keep your hands away from your face as much as possible.