Paper cuts are an unexpected — and painful— side effect of handling paper. But there may be a way to minimize the risk.
According to new research out of the Technical University of Denmark in Kongens Lyngby, certain types of paper are more dangerous to your unsuspecting fingers than others.
In a paper published in the journal Physical Review E, physicist Kaare Jensen and her colleagues explain how they conducted experiments on ballistics gelatine — a gelatin replica of human skin — using various types of paper products to see which type was most likely to cause a paper cut.
The researchers found that if a piece of paper was too thin, it would buckle against the skin before it could cut; if it was too thick, however, it would only indent the skin.
Paper at a thickness of around 65 micrometers was found to be the most likely to lead to paper cuts. Dot matrix paper, then, is the most “hazardous,” according to the researchers.
Luckily, that type of paper is rarely used today, per Science News. Magazine paper was the second most dangerous type of paper.
The angle is also important. Paper that moves straight down into the skin is less dangerous than paper that is moved across and down the skin.
The researchers used this new knowledge to create an experimental “Papermachete,” a 3D printed knife that uses paper as the blade. The single-use blade can “cut into cucumbers, peppers, apple and even chicken,” according to Science News.
Jensen also told Science News that future research would involve more “finger-shaped materials” to test paper against.
“Ideally you would want some test subjects, but it’s hard to find volunteers,” she said.
Why do paper cuts hurt so much?
A 2014 published in the National Library of Medicine found that fingertips more than any other part of the body have the highest spatial acuity, for both pain and touch.
Healthline describes tactical spatial acuity as the “the ability to perceive the sense of touch, including pain.” This means the fingertips, due to the high concentration of nerve endings, are more sensitive to pain than other parts of the body, which is why paper cuts can hurt so much.
How to avoid paper cuts
If avoiding papers of specific thicknesses isn’t possible, Healthline provides some tips for potentially minimizing the potential risk of paper cuts when handling paper products.
- Moisturize your hands.
- Wear gloves.
- Pick up paper slowly.
- Use letter openers.
- Use an envelope moisturizer.