8 Scientific Reasons Why You're Having One Of Those Days
6. You Stub Your Toe
If you were to take a hammer, and tap your abdomen with moderate force, it probably wouldn't hurt all that much, but if you took that same hammer to one of your fingers or toes, it would ruin your day.
So why does it hurt so much more to smack your toe off an errant table leg?
It's due to the high concentration of nerve endings in that area, specifically nociceptors that are specially adapted to pick up damage to tissue. These combined with the massive amount of receptors that you use for delicate fingertip work and you are in for a whole world of pain.
It is generally thought that this supersensitivity is intended to prevent you from doing things like stub your toes, as the hands and feet are used to interact with the world far more than, say, the chest or thighs. Because of this, they're also much more likely to come into contact with infection and disease, so you'll want to be acutely aware of any open wounds.
As for preventing this phenomenon, there's not much you can do other than watch where you're going or wear shoes. It's probably why we invented shoes in the first place, come to think of it.