Antibiotics Found In Beards?

Beards have definitely made a comeback and whether they’re here to stay or will be making an exit soon remains to be seen, but this trend has certainly sparked a debate about all the bacteria that beards contain. One research showed that beards contain more bacteria than the toilet and with that, Pandora’s box was opened.

Experts from all walks of life started debating whether beards are healthy or more of a health hazard, which inspired Adam Roberts from the University College London to conduct an experiment and analyze the “contents” of beards.

Roberts tested 20 beards and discovered around 100 different bacteria hidden inside. Out of the 100 bacteria that were isolated, around 25% proved to have antibiotic activity.

This study is part of a global effort to find new antibiotics, which may sound contradictory given that it’s the overuse of these medications that’s creating resistance among the bacteria, and causing problems with illnesses that were at one point easily treated with a pack of these meds.

However, Roberts believes that new antibiotics need to be developed so that the use of each type of antibiotics that are currently in circulation is vastly limited, putting less pressure on the bacteria to become resistant, allowing mankind to keep on fighting them successfully.

Do you find beards to be dirty? Would you grow one and have it tested for medical research? We’d like to hear from you!