A study has found a correlation between removing pubic hair and contracting sexually transmitted diseases (STIs).

Published in the journal of Sexually Transmitted Infections, the research found that “extreme groomers” – or people who totally remove their pubic hair 11 times per year – were more than four times as likely to contract herpes, syphilis and human papillomavirus than those who maintain an au naturel look.

High-frequency groomers, or those who simply trim their hair a few times a month, were three times as likely to contract STIs.

Doctors at the University of California in San Francisco surveyed 7500 men and women between the ages of 18 and 65, finding that 74 per cent had landscaped their nether regions in the past.

Unsurprisingly, grooming was more popular among women, with 84 per cent having trimmed, shaved or waxed, compared to just over two thirds of men.

Human papillomavirus (HPV) and syphilis, which both affect the skin, were most highly associated with aggressive grooming – or going for the full Brazilian.

Commentators were quick to point out the limitations of the study, namely that it did not take into account whether the participants were having safe sex, or whether they had been vaccinated against HPV.