Get Premium
Dark mode theme is available exclusively for premium users. Learn more about the benefits of subscribing.
No fees, cancel anytime.
Dark Mode 
No fees, cancel anytime 
Sure, we can turn a blind eye to the dark side of the world. But that won't make it any brighter. I would even argue that we should, on the contrary, venture into the shadows. Into the unknown. I believe we'd come out with a better understanding of ourselves. Or at the very least, of our surroundings.
Luckily, there are two Reddit posts we can use as starting points for our journey. One by u/Literal-Pile-of-Poo and the other by u/Yoloextreme345. They're phrased differently but essentially ask the same thing and invite other users to share some of the most disturbing facts they know. And many have. Here are some of the most popular submissions.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
When X-ray technology first became widely available to pediatricians, they noticed a startling high number of broken bones. Befuddled doctors assumed there was a previously unknown pediatric bone disease being observed for the first time. Turns out we had no idea how common child abuse is.
RELATED:
#2
Humans, being mostly Carbon, can be made into diamonds.
I plan to go the cheaper route and have my ashes be rolled into a glass paperweight. Some day I might even end up on the shelf of a Goodwill for $2.99
We managed to get in touch with one of the people who started this discussion, u/Literal-Pile-of-Poo, and they were kind enough to have a little chat with us about their now-viral post.
"I think I [came up with the idea for it when I] was just watching TV and [since] I liked reading those kinds of threads in r/AskReddit where people tell stories or something that was just interesting like [random] facts, I thought I would just make a post that I would find interesting to read as well," the Redditor told Bored Panda.
#3
Giving birth has higher mortality rate than having an abortion.
#4
Whales don't die from old age they just lose the strength to pull them selves up for air and slowly sink and drown
Billy Beecham 3 years ago
Damn. I got stage 4 copd so I can relate. Depressing. At least they could just *blink* be dead instead of that crap!
"From the responses, I learned a lot about how nature is much more brutal than it seems. Many of the facts were about weird things animals do," the Redditor added.
But with that being said, they think people should not seek messed up info if they're not into that kind of thing. "The less disturbing things you come across the better in my opinion. But, I feel this post was more geared towards changing your perspective on how things work."
#5
Right now, your Government is doing things YOU think only OTHER Governments do.
#6
Three of the air packs that were found on the wreckage of the Challenger disaster were activated, meaning at least one of the astronauts was alive all the way to the ocean.
Del Olds 3 years ago
I actually worked on that mission and one of the lead investigators had told me that other than the pilot, copilot and last person in the seating arrangement, all o2 aux systems had been activated. I believe he said the person behind had to do the activation, which implied 5 people were conscious. That investigator also worked Apollo One right out of college and told me that sad story. How did I come by this info, I had worked on the TDRSS fuel and engine systems and when I was watching the launch, I realized immediately it was a pressure-based explosion. So for 3 days I thought I may have caused the problem and was quite distraught. A VP at the company called his good friend, the investigator I mentioned, and they called me to ket me know i had not contributed to the disaster. But I will never forget the impact of that day and how it forever changed how I dealt with setbacks.
However, there's something intrinsically human about seeking out gloom. Experts call it negativity bias.
In short, it's our tendency not only to register negative stimuli more readily but also to dwell on these events. Also known as positive-negative asymmetry, this negativity bias means that we feel the sting of a rebuke more powerfully than we feel the joy of praise.
As humans, we tend to:
- Remember traumatic experiences better than positive ones;
- Recall insults better than praise;
- React more strongly to negative stimuli;
- Think about negative things more frequently than positive ones;
- Respond more strongly to negative events than to equally positive ones;
So chances are, we'll see similar posts in the future as well.
#7
I was told by a very senior police officer (a parent of a kid I taught) that it is estimated that 30% of all missing persons reported to police who are never located have been murdered and more often than not they have been murdered by the person reporting them missing in the first place. The police know this, but lack evidence to proceed with prosecutions.
#8
Doctors used to perform heart surgery on infants without anesthesia. Thankfully this practice was ended.
In the 1980s.
Billy Beecham 3 years ago
In the 80's? Whose idea was it to not use anaesthesia? Whoever decided that deserves a pineapple up the ass without anaesthesia. Daily.
#9
A Jewish doctor treated Hitler’s Mother(The only person Adolf ever truly loved) while she was dying of cancer.
He promised his eternal gratitude to the doctor and even after becoming a pathological anti-Semite and later the Fuhrer, he was true to his word and was adamant the doctor and his family be placed under protection from the purge.
While some may think this an act of genuine kindness, I just think about all the lives lost because Hitler never stopped to think that all Jews were capable of good and not just the one who happened to have been good to him because of immediate proximity..
Charlotte A. 3 years ago
Hitler probably didn't have Jews killed because he genuinely feared or hated them - he did it to give the German people a "common enemy" and basically to manipulate the public. Which is kind of worse.
#10
When I was younger: realizing that adults don’t have a clue what they are doing half the time either was the biggest wake up call.
#11
There are face mites which live inside your pores next to your hair follicle, eat your sebum, don't have anuses and come out at night to mate on your skin. And there's nothing you can do about it. I'm so sorry.
Billy Beecham 3 years ago
Yup. They be gettin freaky deaky on ya face all night long. You thought you had oily skin. Now you know that ain't oil. It freaky deaky juice.
#12
Urine used to be an ingredient in stained glass.
So now whenever I see old churches with stained glass, I think of piss-stained rainbow windows.
#13
There is micro plastic in everything you eat and drink. Even the air you breathe contains plastic
#14
"If you cannot afford an attorney one will be provided for you" doesnt mean the attorney is free
Uisgea Beatha 3 years ago
True, and it also doesn't mean they're any good. Most of them put zero effort into actually defending you and instead just encourage you to plead guilty and take the prosecutor's offer. Interesting that the judge, the prosecutor, and your court-appointed lawyer are all on the same payroll.
#15
The average polar bear liver contains enough Vitamin A to kill 52 adults.
Katy McMouse 3 years ago
I think the average polar bear could do enough damage without the aid of it's liver.
#16
One of the most toxic chemicals on Earth is an organic mercury compound. The material safety sheet notes that it has a slightly sweet odor, but at a concentration where the smell is detectable, it is already lethal. That observation came from someone who would inevitably die from accidental exposure.
#17
Around 30 people die every year, getting crushed from shaking a vending machine.
#18
I remember being told eggs have a protein structure so similar to our blood that you could use blood as an egg substitute in cakes etc.
Really wish I wasn't told that
#19
Dolphins cut of the head of smaller fish and use it for masturbation.
Nature is wonderful innit?
#20
People dying often smell sweet. Not in a sugary way, but much more in flowery way. It's the decompositions of the body already starting. It can also smell vaguely like alcohol, especially their breath
crazy_cat_notAlady 3 years ago
i know this! not just people, but animals too. sometimes weeks in advance. if u smell this, u can predict death with almost 100% accuracy. :(
#21
The fungus that can take over a bug's brain and turn them into basically a real life zombie ant
#22
A human head can twist approximately 306° before it pops off
#23
In order to conserve water, a camel's urine comes out as a thick syrup.
#25
Decomposing bodies:
Generally, it could take about a year for the body to decompose into a skeleton in ordinary soil and eight to twelve years to decompose a skeleton.
And if a dead body is inside a coffin and buried deep underground, it could even take 50 years to decompose all tissues on the body.
Billy Beecham 3 years ago (edited)
Yet if you leave it in the tub of a non air conditioned apartment you get soup in like what, eight days?
#26
It takes 8 pounds of pressure to tear off a human ear; a force approximately equivalent to crushing a soda can.
#27
The body fat of a drowned person turns into a soap-like substance if they stay under water with no air contact
#28
Anything and everything about Albert Fish. Man was a true degenerate. If you're faint of heart or have a weak stomach, do NOT look him up. Absolutely disgusting. I wish I could unread everything I read about him.
Samantha Lomb 3 years ago
Because we all know you want to know now. "Hamilton Howard "Albert" Fish was an American serial killer, child rapist, child murderer, and cannibal. He was also known as the Gray Man, the Werewolf of Wysteria, the Brooklyn Vampire, the Moon Maniac, and The Boogey Man." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Fish
#29
That some tumors can grow teeth and hairs
#30
Your bones are warm and wet.
What do you think ?
Autumn Artemis 3 years ago
The most depressing thing about this article was the relentless commentary from our dear friend Peter Weir. Have the day you deserve, sir.
GoddessOdd 3 years ago
I've never seen anyone want to get negative votes so badly. It's really very sad for him, in a way, spending his life trying to piss people off to get attention.
Load More Replies...
More Thinking Needed 3 years ago
As horrible as these are, it's still a nice break from the real world.
Don't Look 3 years ago
Don't look at them as facts. Look at (some of) them as either the alternative view or even the lateral version of something. For instance, instead of worrying about microplastics in the air, consider that you are actually inhaling it from your own clothing. Either way, feel free to disregard 90% of these. It's not like we can actually do anything about them anyway.
Load More Replies... Autumn Artemis 3 years ago
The most depressing thing about this article was the relentless commentary from our dear friend Peter Weir. Have the day you deserve, sir.
GoddessOdd 3 years ago
I've never seen anyone want to get negative votes so badly. It's really very sad for him, in a way, spending his life trying to piss people off to get attention.
Load More Replies... More Thinking Needed 3 years ago
As horrible as these are, it's still a nice break from the real world.
Don't Look 3 years ago
Don't look at them as facts. Look at (some of) them as either the alternative view or even the lateral version of something. For instance, instead of worrying about microplastics in the air, consider that you are actually inhaling it from your own clothing. Either way, feel free to disregard 90% of these. It's not like we can actually do anything about them anyway.
Load More Replies... Related on Bored Panda
