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![“What’s Something Most People Don’t Realize Will [Unalive] You In Seconds?” (57 Answers)](https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/more-dangerous-people-think-fb28-png__700.jpg)
Some people like to live dangerously. They seek out adrenaline in everyday life and through extreme sports. Others prefer to stay safe and, preferably, on the ground. A study conducted in Britain found that 6 in 10 people think of themselves as 'risk-averse.' 69% of the respondents say they're afraid of the consequences those risks might have.
We all probably try to steer away from the things we know are dangerous. But how many unknown dangers are lurking around us? One Internet user was probably wondering the same when they decided to ask: "What's something most people don't realise will [unalive] you in seconds?"
People love morbid stuff on the Internet, so the thread quickly climbed to the top of Reddit's trending content and garnered over 16,000 replies. If you're prone to anxiety over your health, read at your own risk, Pandas!
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
A family friend who taught me how to drive many many years ago told me you have to drive like everyone else on the road is an absolute idiot and has no idea what they're doing. I never forgot that.
AtMostAFabulist 4 months ago
Everyone else on the road IS an idiot AND has no idea what they are doing!
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#2
Water. People often do not respect water and how it can quickly kill you.
#3
As a canadian let me just warn ya
**moose** 🫎
they’re much, MUCH larger and wickedly stronger than people think. for some reason people just don’t realize that these baddies are MASSIVE. psa: they are nowhere even *remotely close* to a deer!!
#4
Large herbivores. They've evolved defenses to make large predators rethink their life choices. They will mess you up.
#6
Hey, that small invertebrate you found by the sea?
Please leave it alone.
Went snorkeling with a guide a long time ago in some coral reefs.
When we saw a shark, the guide was like "Nah, don't worry. They're chill." Then we saw a tiny purple jellyfish, and the guide was like "WHATEVER YOU DO, stay away from this thing, it'll paralyze you and then you'll drown."
BoredBranzino 4 months ago
A little over simplified. Meaning: Situational Awareness is key - wherever you may be. You don't want to bump into a Tiger Shark while frantically avoiding that purple jellyfish. Though I don't know how a guide would communicate all that while SNORKELING. Just be aware at all times, life isn't easy.
#7
Moving water.
It's freaking dangerous. Water is heavy so when it's moving it has a lot of energy. It might not feel too bad walking through knee deep flowing water but if you fall the water will have more area to push on. You may not be able to get yourself on your feet again.
#8
Manipulations by chiropractors.
And if the manipulation doesn't kill you, it can certainly cause paraplegia or quadriplegia, vertebral dissections.
The sad part is that chiropractors will never own up to the fact and they'll actually claim that patients are coming in with an active stroke. Unfortunately a lot of their research is skewed. I would highly recommend looking into the American medical association, particularly neurologist to see the detrimental effects that a chiropractor can have. It's unfortunate how many people die secondary to a chiropractic manipulations - particularly in the neck and back.
For reference, I am a occupational therapist who has seen plenty of paraplegics and quadriplegics secondary to chiropractic injury.
#9
Hippos. Put it this way: Steve freakin' Irwin was afraid of hippos! If something is so dangerous that the croc wrestler is scared of them you do not mess with it!
#10
So I was trying to look up a DIY mixture to remove mold/mildew recently. A surprising number of sources (including an AI tool) suggested mixing bleach and vinegar.
Rule of thumb. Never mix anything for cleaning, there are far too many chemical weapons that can accidentally be made.
#11
The Great Lakes. Just this past weekend 4 people decided to go in the water near my house even though the beach was under red flag warning and high waves. 3 got pulled out by a Good Samaritan when they got in trouble. Three days later and coast guard and fire department still hasn’t found the body of the 4th one. Rip tides are real. Weather kicks up fast. The Great Lakes are huge and dangerous. This is not your local pontoon lake.
#12
Falling from regular standing height. My mom fell forward holding some groceries, got her arms out to brace her fall and still broke her wrist and jaw in multiple places. Grandma broke her hip just falling out of bed. Falling is dangerous
#13
Horses
we've lived with them for so long that unless you spend regular time around them, you don't know just how unbelievably dangerous they are. It's a good thing they're so stupid or we'd be f****d.
Movies have people believing they're these docile creatures that live to serve humans. Those are the ones that have been trained *extensively*. They are otherwise 1500 pounds of dumb panicky hair-trigger muscle.
smolspeedycats 4 months ago
"Dumb panicky hair-trigger muscle" could also work for some humans, be careful out there lol
#14
Do not f**k with koalas they are capable of ending you. Having held one at Lone Pines, those adorable bastards have steak knives for hands and get scared of falling really easily.
BeesEelsAndPups 4 months ago
Squirrels. I once saw a kid chase a squirrel into a corner, and that squirrel jumped on his face and clawed him to bits. Kid was fine afterwards, but he'll have some scars to remember that day by.
#15
Things under huge amounts of tension. Boat lines, garage door springs, various other cables or springs used in industrial settings. These can send you back to the character select in an instant.
Capacitors. Maybe most people don't interact with them, but for those that do (DIY electronics repairs), a typical PSU in a home computer have capacitors that can kill you. Shocking, I know.
#16
Brake-checking a semi (you’d think it’d be obvious but nope).
StrangeOne 4 months ago
If you see someone you think is speeding, just move aside and get out of the way. Let the police find them and fate make the determination how they'll learn their lesson. The road is the best place to mind your own business.
#17
I stopped two German or Austrian tourists from touching a poisonous frog in Colombia. They had no idea. They were inches away with their phones.
I hadn't spoken German in years, but man my panic reaction brought those words to the tip of my tongue real fast.
Don't mess with wildlife, especially outside your own habitat.
#18
A motorcycle. Crashed my Harley and have had 3 spinal surgeries, had 7 broken ribs, torn rotator cuffs....if I hadn't been wearing my helmet (which I didn't for years trying to be a tough guy/ idiot) I probably wouldn't be writing this. Helmet was scraped down to the inner layer.
#19
Maternal hemorrhage. I am routinely shocked by expectant mothers who want to give birth at home, arguing that they can always transfer to the hospital "if there's a problem." No, no they can't. If the wrong type of bleeding begins, they'll be dead before the ambulance gets there.
Edit: as noted below, in some countries, certified nurse midwives attend home births with medications they can use to treat hemorrhage. However that is NOT the case in the US, where insurance requirements mean that most CNMs must be attached to hospitals. In many American states, "midwife" is not a restricted term, so self-described midwives with no qualifications at all get hired to attend home births. The results are a fairly predictable higher mortality rate for home births vs. hospital births in America.
David 4 months ago
YES. I watched my daughter almost bleed out giving birth. And she was in a hospital. A lot of worried looking nurses and doctors coming and going for a while. They finally got it stopped, she was pale and super weak but was lucky. She and her sister were home births. We were poor, it was affordable, everything went fine. But if I knew all I know now back then, I probably would have been afraid to do home birth.
#21
Grapefruit. It interacts with a *ton* of medication.
Bartlet for World Domination 4 months ago
Also Seville oranges, limes, pomelos and maybe pomegranate. Here's the list (PDF) https://www.cmaj.ca/content/suppl/2012/11/26/cmaj.120951.DC1/grape-bailey-1-at.pdf
#22
Cat bites. Their teeth are very thin like needles, and oftentimes after a deep puncture, the top layer of skin closes leaving infection trapped inside from all the bacteria in their mouths. If you ever get bitten by a cat, go to urgent care asap for antibiotics. Even if it seems fine at first. Waiting even just a few days can lead to sepsis (blood infection) which can be deadly.
I work in veterinary medicine, and one of my coworkers almost lost her hand from a cat bite infection.
#23
Enclosed spaces. Don't assume it's the air you're used to down there.
#24
Inhaling too much helium.
I worked at a party store and we had someone rent a helium tank. We rented them by the week and then every week after there was a charge done to your card immediately. After 3 months we got a call from the renter's daughter asking if we could please stop charging her father's card. He had used the helium tank commit [self-harm] the day he rented the tank and we had charged him over $1,500 in the 3 months since.
It became a huge thing where we had to actively tell people once you fill your lungs completely with helium that the avioli can no longer process oxygen correctly. So while it's all fun and games to have that squeaky voice one super deep breath can end your life.
#25
Pushing someone.
My friend’s father got into a verbal altercation with someone. They pushed him. He fell and hit his head on the pavement. Lights went out immediately and he was brain dead. They had to take him off life support not even 12 hours later. So sad every time I think about it. He was a good man.
#26
Fistfight. One wrong punch and you’re in prison for killing a dude.
#27
Selfies in high places.
#28
Rust. If you run into a hole in the ground with rusty stuff inside, that does not get good ventilation. Dont go in. Rust is iron combined with oxygen. And it can eat all of the oxygen in the air. And fun fact, your body cant tell how much oxygen is in the air, but does sense carbon dioxide is there. So you dont know you are going until you are dead.
BeesEelsAndPups 4 months ago
When I see a rusty hole in the ground, my inclination is not to go inside. But thank you for the warning.
#29
Running across the street and assuming the car sees you and will stop.
Just wait for the light.
StrangeOne 4 months ago
Never just assume drivers care about your life. It could be your right to cross and their obligation to stop, but that doesn't mean they'll comply. Hold your hand out to indicate you're cross, look at the driver, look back for any vehicles wanting to turn onto the street your crossing from behind you, look for any cars not slowing down in every lane.
#30
Carbon Dioxide.
People have died playing with dry ice.
Max Fox 4 months ago (edited)
What happens is that high concentrations of CO2 cause your blood to absorb CO2 instead of oxygen. Since normal Oxygen levels are 21% and CO2 levels are 0.03%, the blood loses CO2 to the atmosphere and absorbs oxygen. However, if CO2 levels are too high, blood starts binding CO2 instead of oxygen, and we suffocate at the cellular level, even though oxygen levels are high enough. When CO2 is around 4% of the atmosphere, it can kill you, even if oxygen remains at 21%.
#32
Hi I’m in EMS.
Please wash your hands before you eat stuff, so many people come in contact with so many other people who have illnesses that can be contracted by eating with unclean fingers. Even if you’ve been around people you know all day you never know who they’ve been around, and sometimes it’s not even illnesses rather random germs AND I KNOW THIS IS OBVIOUS TO SOME PEOPLE but next time you see a local EMS crew eating food with their funny colored gloves on it’s because we’ve made a habit even if we hadn’t run any calls that day.
Of course if you aren’t in healthcare you’re not being exposed to as much but sometimes you need a reminder just how dirty the outside world really is lmao.
Pittsburgh rare 4 months ago
Wash your hands as soon as you get home is also good advice. Mind blowing how many people discovered hand washing during COVID
#33
Garage door springs. let a pro fix it. Mine snapped a bunch of years ago and it tore a 3 foot long hole in my garage door in a fraction of a second.
#34
Inhalents. I tried them once in high school. 2 weeks later a kid at another school died from using them THE FIRST TIME.
A couple weeks after that, I was offered them again. I told them f**k no and asked if they hadn't heard about the dead kid. They looked at me and seriously replied, "Oh yeah, it's okay. He used the wrong brand. He used the blue bottle, instead of the purple bottle.".
#35
Carbon monoxide. well, minutes, but still.. it's odorless and colorless. most likely, you won't even know.
#36
An allergic reaction to something you have been exposed to countless times before.
My mom was in her 40s when she suddenly had a reaction to a bee sting and almost died.
kissmychakram 4 months ago
Indeed. My sister was a huge fan of seafood and ate it all the time until she was 19 or so when out of nowhere anaphylaxis, a trip to the hospital and a fun application of chest paddles. It happened at least once more before it was agreed that she was now deathly allergic.
#37
Entering or falling into a septic tank. Deaths are often not isolated to one person, but also the people who come in after in an attempt to rescue them.
#38
Not looking right and left when crossing a street.
Brian Droste 4 months ago
Or even when driving. Once you look one way then the other way, look back toward the first way again. Even though it might only take a second or less to turn your head, still something can come from the other side real quick.
#39
Hitting your head against a wall.
There's a pretty famous story about a basketball player who missed a shot, got annoyed and headbutted (if I remember correctly) the post the hoop is attached to.
Didn't kill him but paralysed him from the neck down for life.
People do die from doing this, I've seen people get mad and headbut something 100 times, but do it wrong once and that's it, you're dead.
Edit: He made the shot but was called out got a foul so it didn't count, he died 13 years later. Someone has replied with a video link but... watch at your own discression, its not nice.
#40
Electricity, particularly involving overhead wires.
David 4 months ago
Also static electricity. With high voltage lines you don't have to get anywhere close to touching them to get shocked. Once in my ignorant youth a friend and I climbed a high voltage line tower. We were only about half way up when we started getting shocked. We were FAR from the actual lines. Obviously it was not the full shock of the lines. But it was enough to maybe make someone lose their grip and fall and we were high enough up for the fall to have maybe killed us. If you have been around farms - think about the level of shock from an electric fence.
#41
I would venture to say most people realize what can kill you instantly but less commonly discussed would be dehydration.
Yes you can die within seconds from it.
Heart failure is what gets you and if you are already primed for a heart attack due to either unhealthy habits or genetics, dehydration can kill you in seconds. Some drop dead of a widow maker right there on the spot.
Dehydration truly is a gamble so be cautious with it. Happens a lot in the summer months as people pick up alcohol and energy drinks instead of electrolytes. .
The Shark 4 months ago
Don't wait til you're thirsty to drink water. By then, you're already on your way to dehydration. Also, if you find yourself drinking tons of water but never feeling quenched, get some electrolytes. You need salt to replace what is lost in sweat and urine. When sodium levels are too low, water moves into cells and causes them to swell, which can cause a whole range of symptoms, including death. Hyponatremia is real. Hydrate your cells, don't drown them. 😉
#42
Those green transformer boxes found in people's yards. I've seen so many people sitting on them, climbing them, standing on them, playing on them. Those things transport thousands of volts of electricity and it only takes one second to receive the electric chair treatment.
Alice Landers 4 months ago
Really? Ours have warning painted on them, even warning to keep 'plantings/shrubs' within so many feet away
#44
A ruptured aneurysm can kill you in seconds. It's often sudden and without warning, making it extremely dangerous and usually fatal if not treated immediately.
John Mosley 4 months ago
And it can happen to anyone of any age or level of fitness at any time. Sleep tight!
#45
Poorly designed and manufactured submarines. Milliseconds actually.
#46
Anyone who works in a shop (hopefully) knows this… but compressed air. Not an uncommon thing for you to use it to blow metal shavings or other debris off your clothes after you’re done working, but if you have even a small cut somewhere and you get the air gun too close you can put an air bubble in your blood stream which will kill you the moment it passes through your heart. From what I’ve been told it is very painful and only takes a few seconds.
#47
Using a massage gun on your neck...
>*While handheld massage guns are generally safe to use on muscles, using them on the neck can be dangerous. The high vibrations produced by massage guns can injure unprotected areas of the neck, and in rare cases, can cause soft tissue damage or stroke-like symptoms.*.
#48
Eating polar bear liver. You’ll die of vitamin A poisoning. Vitamin A is not water soluble and eating too much can lead to painful symptoms and death. One polar bear liver has enough to kill over 50 adults.
#49
If you get hit in the chest at a specific part of the heart's cardiac rhythm, dead. If you accidentally massage your carotid and have a vagal sensitivity, dead. If you have a genetic predisposition for certain arrhythmias and get startled, dead. The heart is a tricksy thing
Eta this is very rare. However, if you have any family members who have died unexpectedly and young and have a history of fainting for no reason get an EKG asap. .
#50
Scuba diving. You lose track of time. Stay down a minute too long. That's it.
What do you think ?
BeesEelsAndPups 4 months ago
Some of these things are so unlikely they may as well have mentioned ACME Branded Anvils falling from the sky
Joshua Moore 4 months ago
I bet Wile E. Coyote feels like quite the fool about now. 🥰🤣
Load More Replies... 
Dan Flo 4 months ago
Hydraulics. In one of my first customer support calls, the customer told me that they now have color coded hoses with pressure ratings because a few years earlier a guy connected a hose with 1400 bar burst pressure into a 1500 bar pump. The hose ruptured and a thin jet of hydraulic fluid cut through his body, killing him instantly. Even if you get the injection injury in your hand, you need to go to the hospital or you are done for. If you havnt eaten in a while, and is not easily disturbed, look up hydraulic injuries.
Moosy Girl 4 months ago
Normally I’m the first off to Google stuff, but I’m just gonna take your word on this one. :p
Load More Replies...
Colin Matthews 4 months ago
New Zealand. It's not an Eco-Disneyland for northern Hemisphere tourists. The water is cold enough to kill in minutes, the back country, the South Island and the alpine areas look nice, but wander along a trail without the right gear or knowing the weather and you WILL die of exposure.
BeesEelsAndPups 4 months ago
Also, volcanoes, earthquakes, tsunamis, and uruk hai.
Load More Replies...
censorshipsucks 4 months ago
Yep I see a crash every week because idiots do that a lot in SA (my country). Basically only red lights, in the day, with a pre-existing queue, are respected. Outside those criteria, a lot of people jump them.
Load More Replies...
christie lowe 4 months ago
Dont ever ever try to run across the lanes of a freeway. You will not make it and it will traumatize more people than you think
Arlene Harris 4 months ago
do not load knives in the dishwasher pointy side up. If you grab them wrong you cut your hand. If you trip and fall on them, you become a cutlery block...
Racing Tadpole 4 months ago
Stupid visiting Mother in Law using your toothbrush as it's the same colour as yours, even though I got her a separate container, severe tonsillitis and three days sick in bed. The cat 🐈 loved that I was running a high temperature and would wrap herself around my throat, then I'd move her back down to my stomach.
Shane S 4 months ago
Well worn charger cables. A preteen girl in our community was charging her phone while taking a bath. Essentially dropped a toaster in the tub. Sad thing.
Sand Ers 4 months ago
I haven’t seen an outlet in a bathroom that wasn’t a GFCI in a long long time.
Load More Replies...
Amy Manzanares 4 months ago
When I was a kid, my brother and I were playing on a shed next door to my grandmother's house in Mesa. She came over screaming for us to get off of it. Apparently it was infested with scorpions!
Arlene Harris 4 months ago
if you are using any kind of moving machinery, tie your hair back and out of the way. I saw a woman get scalped when a loose bunch of hair got pulled into a printing press. Don't ever take for granted that you can reach the emergency cut off switch in time.
Steve Hall 4 months ago
So many of these sound to me like the person who gets involved with it deserves to meet their maker.
Colin Matthews 4 months ago
Fair. Like who looks at a polar bear liver and thinks mmmmm yummy
Load More Replies...
BeesEelsAndPups 4 months ago
Some of these things are so unlikely they may as well have mentioned ACME Branded Anvils falling from the sky
Joshua Moore 4 months ago
I bet Wile E. Coyote feels like quite the fool about now. 🥰🤣
Load More Replies... Dan Flo 4 months ago
Hydraulics. In one of my first customer support calls, the customer told me that they now have color coded hoses with pressure ratings because a few years earlier a guy connected a hose with 1400 bar burst pressure into a 1500 bar pump. The hose ruptured and a thin jet of hydraulic fluid cut through his body, killing him instantly. Even if you get the injection injury in your hand, you need to go to the hospital or you are done for. If you havnt eaten in a while, and is not easily disturbed, look up hydraulic injuries.
Moosy Girl 4 months ago
Normally I’m the first off to Google stuff, but I’m just gonna take your word on this one. :p
Load More Replies... Colin Matthews 4 months ago
New Zealand. It's not an Eco-Disneyland for northern Hemisphere tourists. The water is cold enough to kill in minutes, the back country, the South Island and the alpine areas look nice, but wander along a trail without the right gear or knowing the weather and you WILL die of exposure.
BeesEelsAndPups 4 months ago
Also, volcanoes, earthquakes, tsunamis, and uruk hai.
Load More Replies... censorshipsucks 4 months ago
Yep I see a crash every week because idiots do that a lot in SA (my country). Basically only red lights, in the day, with a pre-existing queue, are respected. Outside those criteria, a lot of people jump them.
Load More Replies... christie lowe 4 months ago
Dont ever ever try to run across the lanes of a freeway. You will not make it and it will traumatize more people than you think
Arlene Harris 4 months ago
do not load knives in the dishwasher pointy side up. If you grab them wrong you cut your hand. If you trip and fall on them, you become a cutlery block...
Racing Tadpole 4 months ago
Stupid visiting Mother in Law using your toothbrush as it's the same colour as yours, even though I got her a separate container, severe tonsillitis and three days sick in bed. The cat 🐈 loved that I was running a high temperature and would wrap herself around my throat, then I'd move her back down to my stomach.
Shane S 4 months ago
Well worn charger cables. A preteen girl in our community was charging her phone while taking a bath. Essentially dropped a toaster in the tub. Sad thing.
Sand Ers 4 months ago
I haven’t seen an outlet in a bathroom that wasn’t a GFCI in a long long time.
Load More Replies... Amy Manzanares 4 months ago
When I was a kid, my brother and I were playing on a shed next door to my grandmother's house in Mesa. She came over screaming for us to get off of it. Apparently it was infested with scorpions!
Arlene Harris 4 months ago
if you are using any kind of moving machinery, tie your hair back and out of the way. I saw a woman get scalped when a loose bunch of hair got pulled into a printing press. Don't ever take for granted that you can reach the emergency cut off switch in time.
Steve Hall 4 months ago
So many of these sound to me like the person who gets involved with it deserves to meet their maker.
Colin Matthews 4 months ago
Fair. Like who looks at a polar bear liver and thinks mmmmm yummy
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