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Nothing, in the sense that if you get hurt from a rusty nail, you should also get checked for tetanus...

Tetanus is not caused by rust, it just makes a nice environment for the bacteria to live. It usually comes from agricultural runoff. So the rust on a rusty nail is more likely outside whereas the rust on your shaving razor is less likely to have been exposed to animal dung.

My understanding was that razors go dull due to micro rusting that happens from the wet/dry cycle since your can’t get them ever fully dry.

Could be wrong on that though and my whole understanding of razors is 🤯

Tetanus is not related to rust. Tetanus lives in the soil outside and only infects you if the object you get stabbed by was outside, exposed to contamination by rain splatter and such. Exposure and rain also happens to make metal rusty. Getting tetanus from a rusty nail outside is correlation not causation. You can also get tetanus from a completely rust free garden tool if you stab yourself with it.

The difference is how deep the dirty part gets pushed into your tissue. The Clostridium tetani bacterium hates oxygen (air), but is happy like a bug in a rug when introduced to the anaerobic Petri dish that is your tissues under the skin. Doesn’t have to be a nail; getting stabbed with anything that was exposed to dirt could be a problem

Tetanus is an anaerobic bacteria. It thrives in deep puncture wounds where there is no air circulation. That’s why they are related to rusty nails in peoples heads, but the rust has nothing to do with it. It’s the deep wound with a small entry point.

No, razors go dull because the hairs will wear down the sharp edge, making it more blunt. Most razors use stainless steel, so if they're rusting on you (rust will be visible), then you're doing something wrong (e.g. using the same disposable blade for too long, not properly drying, etc.)

You should never, ever shave with a rusty blade.

That was my immediate takeaway, too! Everyone else is giving real answers and I'm like r/holup

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I guess I've been shaving wrong

I thought this was the other way to use a poop knife.

Then is it false that rusty weapons were used in war to poison enemies? Is it the same correlation?

The way I understand it is that rust is a good environment for the bacteria so it is more likely to maintain active bacteria better. But I could be wrong lol.

You can stick caltrops in dung so they are more dangerous than "3cm nail in the foot" would ordinarily be. For actual handheld weapons, keeping them in good, sharp condition is kind of a priority, since it's small comfort to know the dude you scratched had a bad time a week after he partitioned your ass like it's Poland. Of course peasant armies often went to war with whatever pokey tool they had, and you can absolutely get tetanus from getting stabbed by a hay fork or a straightened scythe. Against armored opponents, sharp weapons are of little use, so knight vs knight combat would have been maces and hammers mostly, and those don't do deep stab wounds anyway (except war picks and morning stars

Specifically, the bacteria Clostridium tetani. It's a benign bacteria which lives in the soil, or in the gut of animals. It's just that inside the bloodstream, in hypoxic conditions, they can produce a toxin.

No cure for blunt force trauma eh?

Thanks for the insight

Turns out there's only so much padding you can fit in a helmet, so competitive in-situ blacksmithing sessions were the go-to method of settling disputes for a good while.

I use a rusty lawnmower blade

Additionaly the cut depth matters, nicks are less likely to give you tetanus than stepping on a nail.

Hijacking the top comment to ask why OP is shaving with a rusty razor. Your face deserves better. Get a new blade

You're half right. The biggest contributor to dulling is mineral deposits from drying cycles.

If you dry the blade after every use (including a blast of compressed air) the blades can last 150+ shaves with minimal wear.

Also, hijack- if you cut yourself deep enough with a “old/rusty” razor they will still give you a tetanus shot

It’s also why Sir Isaac Newton is the deadliest son of a bitch in space.

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This is EXTREMELY difficult to accomplish, however, and usually only done by folks wanting "bragging rights". So called "century shavers" . . . in a practical sense, there is simply no need to be this fanatical about edge wear on disposable blades.

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I have seen what both a safety blade and a straight razor edge look like under an electron scope, and u/Berek2501 is correct. The "edge" is actually a line of "peaks and valleys" which, after contact with your hair, have the tips rounded off or over. Honing is done to "straighten" or realign those peaks and valleys and restore that keen edge. It's quite fascinating to see how "uneven" a truly "straight edge" is under extreme magnification.

Just the video I expected

Some people call it a sling blade

Friendly reminder that while outside rust is more likely to pose a risk because it’s more likely to have been exposed to the bacteria shaving with a rusty razor still isn’t safe. It can still carry bad bacteria and give you a bad time.

Who the hell shaves with a rusty razor?

How to say you e been on Reddit forever without saying you have been on Reddit forever.

That’s my question. Who the hell has a rusty razor?!?

I call it a kaiser blade.

Nothing. The idea that rust itself causes tetanus is a misconception.

Tetanus doesn't come from rust, it comes from things being dirty. It lives in soil. The idea of a "rusty nail" is more indicative that it's been out there in the environment a long time and may have picked up contamination. The rust itself is incidental.

If you get a puncture wound from a non-rusty nail or anything similar out in a field you should also probably get a tetanus shot for that as well.

Tetanus is caused by bacteria. It's a common misconception that this bacteria is inherently found on rusted metal but that's not true, it's found in soil. We've been taught that getting injured on a rusted piece of metal can cause tetanus because for starters, it's more likely to find rusted metal outside than inside, and secondly, it's more likely that rusted metal will injure you than non rusted metal since generally speaking people don't just leave out sharp or dangerous pieces of metal around, but rusted metal can still cut someone because of how the metal turns from smooth to jagged.

If you get cut on rusted metal at a playground for example it could very well contain tetanus, or a fence, or a sign post, or something like that, because it's outside and driven into soil. Rusted metal that's not come in contact with any possible sources of tetanus bacetria can't just have them because it's rusted.

Stop pushing big razor's agenda. Beards are beautiful. Let's normalize not shaving or only shaving with non disposable blades.

How else are we to deal right OP being a drunken sailor?

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Don’t shave with a rusty razor. As others have said rusty things make have bacteria on them and while things outside like nails will have the bacteria that causes tetanus razors can have other bacteria.

In 2007 at The Excalibur, in Las Vegas, NV. A Las Vegas a woman shaved her legs with a rusty razor blade and got a Group A streptococcal infection, which develops into necrotizing fasciitis ("flesh-eating" bacteria), when she cut herself. The bacteria in her blood stream broke through a wart in her face and started eating away at her face, eventually killing her from sepsis.

Throw out rusty razors.

I like to shave my face with a sharp piece of shale, or a good shell. Works great and is incredibly reusable.

If you haven't upgraded to the Pooptana yet, then you need more fiber in your diet. Nothing beats taking a poop, then using unsheathe and a heavy attack to cleave that log in two.

Disposable is fine, but it should be the old school type. Have been shaving with a safety razor for a while now and it's superior in every way to a modern one, and a pack of 50 blades is like $10.

So non-rusty nails in people’s heads is ok?