Nowadays, pretty much anything can kill you. That’s not even an exaggeration; even the most mundane tasks or lifestyle choices can have serious consequences if you don’t know what you’re dealing with.
Thankfully, most things aren’t deadly if you know how to handle them. Thanks to this Reddit post that asks people to name something that’s deadlier than most of us realize, we now know of a bunch of things to avoid in order to live a long life.
Lack of sleep.
“Increased risk of basically everything you can think of… The less sleep you get, the shorter your life-span,” Reddit user notbu writes.
It’s true, getting little sleep (or poor sleep) is one surefire way to damage your metabolism and cause other serious health problems.
Silos (more specifically, climbing into them).
“I was taught young to never, NEVER, climb into a silo. It may look cool, till the corn shifts and sucks you down,” writes Forest_Xavier. Climbing into a grain silo is actually super dangerous. Something called grain engulfment may occur.
Over the last 50 years or so, over 900 cases of grain engulfment have been reported, with a 62% death rate.
Exploring abandoned places.
“When I was a kid I would do it all the time and take photos without any form of facial protection. Fast forward years later and I learn about how toxic certain molds can be, how many older buildings used materials like asbestos which can be in the air when places are left to rot, etc.,” writes childrep.
Old buildings seem cool, but they’re pretty unsafe.
Deer.
Yes, harmless, adorable deer can actually be pretty dangerous. They can be aggressive towards humans , can cause serious and fatal car accidents if you run into one on the road, and they’re overall kind of mean.
“I have seen a deer push her fawn ahead of her near the food, to see if there is a predator, then, if the fawn is ok, go out and hit the fawn to get at the food herself,” ProfNB writes.
Broken glass.
It’s obviously very sharp and dangerous to walk on, but it can get even worse. Redditor BaronIbelin writes that “Broken glass on the floor can again mess your body up spectacularly, and on certain surfaces it’s really hard to spot even moderately sized razor-sharp pieces.” Be extra careful if you shatter a glass or window.
Hippos.
Just like deer, hippos are another animal we don’t automatically associate with danger. But we totally should. “They kill more people in Africa than lions do,” writes MySoilSucks.
They’re actually considered the deadliest land mammal , so they probably kill more humans than a lot of other animals too.
Horses.
As it turns out, we’re severely underestimating a lot of different animals. “They weigh 1200 pounds, they’re extremely jittery, and they can crush you or kick you to death on accident,” Reddit user BillSeacaster writes. If you know how to handle a horse, you should be fine. But always be cautious.
Smoke (from fires).
Housefires are incredibly dangerous. Not just because of the fire itself, but because of the smoke, too. Smoke inhalation is fatal .
You have a better chance of surviving a fire (and smoke) if you have a working smoke alarm.
“Early warning will save your life,” writes Redditor bravosarah. “Most fatal fires happen in the middle of the night when families are asleep. The difference between life and death are only minutes apart.”
Quitting drinking too quickly.
For most of us, cutting out alcohol (or drinking it to begin with) is no biggie. But for people with severe alcohol dependency, quitting cold turkey could be just as bad as the addiction itself.
DiscountSherrif, an EMT, writes that “As soon as the next morning people can present with delirium tremens, severe withdrawals can induce seizures and can also lead to death.”
Sleep apnea.
This one is kind of related to not getting enough (good) sleep. This disease can cause a whole bunch of health problems , not to mention the fact that it can affect the quality of sleep of others around you.
Reddit user mengelhart says you should “wear the CPAP no matter how unsexy it is.” Good advice.
Weirs.
You know those waterfall-things you may see in rivers? The human-made ones? Those are weirs. While it should seem like common sense not to swim in them, some people do anyway.
Kulladar says, “Almost no one knows the bottom of them is a death trap of rotating undercurrent and almost no one knows how to escape one if you do get stuck in it.” Pretty scary.
Driving while tired.
The last thing you ever want to do is fall asleep at the wheel. It can happen so quickly, too. “All you need is that one slow part, or that one part that lulls even a little to put you out,” ChryWolferyn writes.
If you’re lucky enough, you’ll wake up and have the energy to pull over. But this can be very fatal.
Holding your breath while SCUBA diving.
“It may sound harmless but if you hold your breath and ascend even a little over a meter you can suffer major lung damage as a result of the gas in your lungs expanding from the lessening pressure,” Alone-Monk writes.
I would’ve probably thought it was harmless, but I now know that I shouldn’t do that .
Consuming essential oils.
Though there are some food safe kinds, most people probably won’t be able to tell the difference. As for the kind that are supposed to be diffused, willowdove01 says, “Do NOT put them in your food, they are not made to be food safe.”
Running at night without reflectors.
Without reflective gear, it’s hard for drivers to see you. Reddit user chubky writes, “Often times people even wear black. They think that just because they can see the car that the car can see them.” At the very least, try to wear bright colors when it’s dark out.
Oleander (Nerium).
It’s a common, beautiful shrub that also just so happens to be incredibly toxic and deadly to both humans and pets. suavecool21692169 writes that “it’s one of the most common ornamental plants in Southern California, planted in people’s backyards and along freeways.” You’ve almost definitely seen one before. Beware.
Sitting for too long.
Sitting for too long causes blood clots. You need to move your legs from time to time to promote circulation. Having a sedentary lifestyle doesn’t mean you can never move. In fact, you should.
Redditor tjfergusen writes that it’s a common problem among truckers. “You’re supposed to stop and walk around every hour and a half to keep things circulating (which almost nobody does due to time constraints).”
Visine (if ingested with food).
If you’ve seen “Wedding Crashers,” then you might think this is a harmless prank. But Visine drops can be lethal if ingested.
“The main active ingredient is called tetrahydrozoline,” PMmeyourboogers writes. “Once it enters your gastrointestinal tract, it can be absorbed by your intestines and end up in your blood, causing your blood pressure and heart rate to drop to potentially life-threatening levels.”
Plus, tampering with food like this could get you murder charges , so don’t put it in other people’s food (or your own for that matter).
Cosmetic surgery.
Redditor jamestxt writes, “A Brazilian Butt Lift (BBL) gives people a figure reminiscent of the Kardashians and is hugely popular for getting that instagram body. But a paper in the Aesthetic Surgery Journal found that 1 in 3,000 BBLs resulted in death, making it the world’s most dangerous cosmetic procedure!”
Not to mention that any type of surgery always carries inherent risks.
Too much black licorice.
HoneysuckleDame writes, “Real black licorice root extract contains the natural sweetener glycyrrhizin, which is over 50 times sweeter than sucrose. This ingredient has various pharmaceutical properties. It acts as an expectorant (facilitating removal of mucus from the lungs by coughing) and it increases blood pressure. The latter effect can become significant with a daily consumption of 50 g or more of licorice candy for as little as two weeks. Glycyrrhizin can cause potassium levels in the body to fall, triggering abnormal heart rhythms, as well as high blood pressure, edema (swelling), lethargy, and congestive heart failure in some people.”
Guitar amps (or anything with big capacitors).
We all know electricity can be dangerous, but we often don’t associate certain items with their potential to produce a life-threatening shock.
Pei-toss explains, “Touching [stuff] inside a guitar amp can [expletive] you up really bad. It holds a charge. And it all comes out at once if you touch the wrong spot.”
Playing in the sand at the beach.
Digging holes at the beach may carry more risks than you think. catinhat144 writes, “Digging and playing in holes on the beach like I used to love to do as a kid,” is dangerous because “They cave in and smother kids.”
According to this article , a 2007 study showed that there were 52 cases of sand-hole collapses worldwide in the past 10 years. 31 of which resulted in fatalities!
Acetaminophen (and other over-the-counter medications).
Many of us nonchalantly take over-the-counter (nonprescription) painkillers like acetaminophen (Tylenol) when a headache or the like strikes. But we really need to pay close attention to the recommended doses.
Vepry646 points out, “It’s rough on your liver in large doses. I know a lot of people who ignore the recommended dose and pop them like they are skittles for pain. This is incredibly dangerous.”
Grapefruit (if you take certain medications).
“Basically, grapefruit can affect the way your medications work ,” writes A-RovinIGo.
“With some meds, adding grapefruit screws up the way your body metabolizes the drug, so you end up with far more than the prescribed dosage. It can also work in the opposite way with other drugs, leaving you with less than the prescribed dosage.”
Not following posted safety precautions.
Redditor Moses00711 exclaims, “When there are signs saying something, lots ignore thinking they know better.”
They then share their experience , “I used to work IT for a place that makes big tractors. Different stations are restricted from using certain PPE.
One day this lady was wearing the wrong gloves. Her station is only supposed to use latex. She didn’t take that seriously and wore thicker reinforced gloves. She was using the lugnut machine that tightens 12 giant lugs at once. Her glove got caught and instead of ripping the fingertip off of her latex glove it ripped her thumb right… off her hand.
I witnessed it and her mistake haunts me to this day. They had to restrain her while two men held her hand up in the air away from her. Her wails and screams were terrifying.
All because she ignored a well placed warning.”
Eating slugs and snails on a dare.
While many of us probably don’t see a slug on the ground and think to ourselves, ‘there’s lunch,’ you never know what can happen.
FunctionBuilt writes, “Obviously it’s nasty, but kids do stupid [stuff] as dares or even in hazing rituals. Slugs contain parasites that will get into your brain and [can] kill you slowly.”
I wasn’t too keen on trying escargot before, but now I have a great excuse not to try it!
Abscessed Teeth.
my_name_is_bobbi points out, “Abscessed teeth can kill you.”
And they’re right! According to South Tampa Smiles Dentistry, “An abscessed tooth can cause very serious consequences including tooth loss, jaw bone damage, sinus involvement, brain infection, heart complications and even death.”
Vacationing (or travelling to unfamiliar environments).
Redditor kitkatpaddywat explains the reasoning behind the potential dangers. They state, “Particularly in nature if you’re not used to being in nature. There’s a book called Death in Yellowstone and talks about all the weird ways people have died there. Walking off cliffs, falling trees, falling into boiling water… there’s the obvious wildlife attacks but there’s plenty of less obvious ways. The thing is, people are relaxing for once on vacation and they put themselves in different environments than they’re used to. They have their guards down.”
Touch screens in cars.
Chances are that most of us know that being distracted while behind the wheel is never a good thing. But it turns out sometimes we don’t even know we’re distracted, like when we make a quick radio station change on a car touch screen.
Redditor GimmeYourTaxDollars illustrates this point by stating, “Mazda now disables touch functionality in their vehicles because they found that when drivers interact with the touch screen they drift the vehicle to the right.”
Waterfalls (but not the way you think).
When you go chasing waterfalls, don’t stand too close underneath them, or so says this Redditor.
slumper36 says, “Standing under waterfalls… loose rocks or debris from the river or stream above could fall and crush you.”
It seems as though going over the falls isn’t the only thing we need to worry about!
