Beard-lovers, be warned: This post will not please you.

And here we were thinking they were just full of food.

A recent study has shown that bushy beards are pretty much little nests of bacteria, including faecal matter.

A news team in the US asked a microbiologist to swab the beards of a number of hairy volunteers. The microbiologist (who is now probably clean-shaven) said that some of the results were ‘disturbing’.

“There would be a degree of uncleanliness that would be somewhat disturbing,”said John Gobolic from the team. “I’m usually not surprised and I was surprised by this.”

One word: Ew.

Read more: Meet the 23-year-old with a beard that would make all the hipsters jealous.

Because beards are so in fashion these days, we feel that everyone should be on red alert. If you are kissing a bearded man, be sure to wash your face and hands. If you ARE a bearded man, be sure to wash your beard and hands. Actually, just everyone: Wash often.

No one likes a face full of faecal matter.

Hilarious video: How to interact with a bearded man.