A new study by scientists has revealed that men with beards have more germs in their hir than dogs have in their flur.

The study found that every sample of beard hair collected was crawling with bacteria,  nearly half had bugs and bacteria considered hazardous to human health, the Daily Mail reports.

The dogs tested had lower levels of microbes, a bacterium that causes disease.

Scientists initially wanted to determine if humans could pick up a dog-borne disease from an MRI scan that was also used for examinations by veterinarians.

Researchers took swabs from beards of 18 men, ages 18 to 76, and the necks of 30 dogs.

The results revealed that all of the bearded men had high amounts of microbial counts. Only 23 of the 30 dogs had high counts, and the remainder had moderate levels. Seven men even had harbor microbes that posed a threat to their health.

“On the basis of these findings, dogs can be considered as clean compared with bearded men,” Dr. Andreas Gutzeit, of Switzerland’s Hirslanden Clinic told the Daily Mail.

The MRI scanners showed a “significantly” lower bacteria count compared to levels seen when it was used by humans.

Keith Flett, the founder of the Beard Liberation Front, told the Daily Mail he questions the findings.

“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. I don’t believe that beards in themselves are unhygienic.”

However, KUTV 2News did not commission or participate in this study and could not verify its results or findings.