JOIN
OUR EMAIL LIST!
SIGN UP

People Break Down Which Things Are Far More Likely To Kill You Than People Realize

File:Garage door sliding up.jpg - Wikimedia Commons

If you're as paranoid as I am, then this list is going to get your mind racing.

Our bodies are very delicate, to say the least. And people are mostly aware of the things that can hurt them. Big falls, deep water, major surgeries, for example.

But apparently, Redditor u/CurlyFries75 needed to know about the most mundane ways that people can die - and asked people to share "What's more likely to get you killed than people realize?" Looking for more things to worry about? Then read ahead!

Dehydration is real

Not bringing enough water on a hike, even a somewhat short one, I have experience with this and it's scary

LiamSorensen

Is it your lucky day?

You have a better chance of dying on your way to buying a lottery ticket than you do of winning the jackpot

coreynj2461

People don't know their own strength

Going partying.

A drunk guy doesn't really need a good reason to see you as an aggressor when they wanna fight. One unlucky hit, and you're in a vegetative state or something worse.

CantBanTheJan

But cows are so cute!

Being killed by a cow, you more likely to be killed by a cow than attacked by a shark or struck by lightning.

-The-Soviet-Union-

Do farm animals have it out for us?

donkeys kill more people than sharks in a year

peepeepooopooooooo

I've witness a coconut hit someone, and it was horrifying 

A coconut falling on your head is a more likely chance of death(not injury or wound) than shark attack

Grootdapup

Do not trust drivers to stop for you

Walking across the street when the light is red. Too many people do it, thinking that they will not be the ones that will come across someone who drives faster than he should or perhaps he is drunk. Hundreds of people die from drive accidents everyday. Don't run across the street without looking left and right, especially elder ones.. arrogant while they look down at the floor just walking in the middle of the fast road.

1selfconscience1

Keep your friends close...


Friends. It's way more likely to get killed by someone who knows you than a stranger who randomly comes and kills you. People close to you would have more reasons to kill you.

YodasChick-O-Stick

Sorry, left handers...

Being left-handed. It substantially lowers your life expectancy, in part because it's easier to hurt yourself if the world is designed completely ass-backward for you.

fluffychonkycat

I don't understand why you wouldn't wear a helmet

Not wearing proper protection (helmet, leather coat/gloves, covering exposed skin) while riding a motorcycle. I work in an ER and lemme tell ya, that's usually what will determine whether you live or die. Don't be stupid and dress for the slide, not the ride.

SwingGirlAtHeart

You must invest in bath mats

Taking a shower. Bathroom falls are one of the most common causes of accidental death.

OutspokenLurker

My boyfriend takes showers all the time when he's stumbling drunk and I always stand outside the bathroom door like an overprotective mother making sure he doesn't fall.

occasional_mooing

Crime podcasts can confirm

Your own friends and family

Laz505

That's why I distanced myself from family and have no friends.

poopellar

Leave electricity to the professionals


Electricity. I'm a 911 dispatcher and one of my first calls was a person who was pretty much blown up when working on a microwave while it was still plugged in.

LostAtBaguette

All surgeries are serious 

"Minor" surgery.

RutzButtercup

A friend of the family died during a routine colonoscopy. I don't know the details beyond that, but seems like crazy bad luck.

Streeturchin1337

Winter has its perils

Ice. Seriously, be careful when walking outside during the winter. One slip on your porch can turn real ugly if you're unlucky.

LintuLife

My friend's husband was a healthy 60-year old. Slipped on a bit of ice on their front step, hit his head just right, died within minutes.

ZweitenMal

We depend on a deadly star

The sun. Heat stroke or skin cancer.

Rub_My_Brisket

See? The sun really is a deadly laser!

writeorelse

I'll never look at garages the same

Garage doors, specifically the springs.

DeDtRoLl

One of our springs let go last year while we were home. Fortunately, no damage, but it sounded like someone fired off a shotgun.

b33r_engineer

Horses are mighty beasts

Horse riding. Horse riding has a higher incidence of death and injury than MDMA use. The ex-UK drug minister David Nutt was fired for publishing this data.

Modest_Gaslight

Once I personally knew five people who had fractured their necks while riding I decided to give it up. Two were trainers and it left me feeling like even the best of riders were at risk of serious injury or death. I wasn't doing anything particularly dangerous, just trail riding with friends but I think horseback riding is like childbirth- 99% of the time things go well but when things go wrong, they go badly wrong.

Horses are beautiful creatures, I learned so much about animal behavior, training, riding, equine disorders and made so many friends but as one old trainer said to me before a lesson, "Rule one, horses are bigger than you and can kill you."

Uvabird

Driving is scary

Driving your car

Master_Belial93

Driving, when you think about it, is insane. I'm going to drive at you at high speeds; you're going to drive at me at high speeds; and we're going to have an unspoken trust that both of us will stay in our 12ft wide lane as we narrowly miss each other.

stubept

Know your Heimlich 

Food, I don't think people realize how dangerous food is. A couple of weeks ago I choked on a Oreo at 3am while my family was asleep. Thankfully I knew how to do the Heimlich maneuver on myself, literally saved my life.

SteveKerrDad-y

Want to "know" more? Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again. Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.

people share

People Describe The Most Traumatizing Thing They Ever Experienced As A Child

Image by Anemone123 from Pixabay

Life is hard. It's a miracle to make it through with some semblance of sanity. We are all plagued by grief and trauma. More and more people of all backgrounds are opening up about personal trauma and its origins. Finally! For far too long we've been too silent on this topic. And with so many people unable to afford mental health care, the outcomes can be damaging.

All of our childhoods have ups and downs and memories that can play out like nightmares. We carry that, or it follows us and the first step in recovery is talking about it. So who feels strong enough to speak?

Redditor u/nthn_thms wanted to see who was willing to share about things they'd probably rather forget, by asking:

What's the most traumatizing thing you experienced as a child?
Keep reading... Show less
childhood

People Divulge The Real Reason Why They're Still Single

Image by klimkin from Pixabay

Being single can be fun. In fact, in this time of COVID, being single can save lives. But the heart is a fickle creature.

And being alone can really suck in times of turmoil. None of us are perfect and it feels like that's all anyone is looking for... perfect.

Now that doesn't mean that all of us are making it difficult to partner up. Sure, some people are too picky and mean-spirited, but some of the rest of us are crazy and too much to handle. So one has to be sure.

The truth is, being single is confusing, no matter how much we try to match. So let's try to understand...

Redditor u/Mcxyn wanted to discuss some truths about love and our own issues, by asking:

Why are you single?
Keep reading... Show less
being single

Chefs Divulge The Most Important Tips That Amateur Cooks Need To Know

Tiard Schulz/Unsplash

Whether you're an at home parent, a college student just leaving the nest, or a Food Network junkie, there are a few basic tips that everyone should know.

Chef's gave us some of their top tips for amateurs and beginner at home cooks that will really make a difference. They are trained professionals with years of experience in the kitchen, so they definitely know what we're all missing.

If you're looking to improve some of your cooking skills and techniques, but you're still learning how to boil water correctly, this list is for you.

Redditor BigBadWolf44 wanted in on the secrets and asked:

"Chefs of Reddit, what's one rule of cooking amateurs need to know?"

Let's learn from the masters!


What a common mistake!

"A lot of the time when people add salt to a dish because they think it tastes flat, what it really needs is an acid like lemon juice or vinegar."

- Vexvertigo

"Instructions unclear I drugged my dinner party guests and now they're high on acid."

- itsyoboi_human

"Yes! Or tomatoes. They're pretty acidic too and go with so many things. Our dinners are so much better once the garden tomatoes are ripe. Or if a dish is too acidic, oil/butter or a little sugar can help add balance to it."

- darkhorse85

"Like tomato and eggs. Every Chinese mom makes those slightly differently and I haven't had a tomato egg dish I didn't like yet."

- random314

"There's a book called 'Salt Fat Acid Heat' that comes highly recommended to amateur cooks."

- Osolemia

"Reading even just the first chapter about salt made a lot of food I cooked immediately better, because I finally understood salt wasn't just that thing that sat on the dinner table that you applied after the meal was cooked."

- VaultBoy42

"Salt is important for sweets. A batch of cookies without that little hint of salt doesn't taste quite right."

- Osolemia

Unfortunately, this tip might not be accessible to everyone. Many people who contracted COVID can no longer use their sense of smell the way they used to.

"Have a friend that lost his smell from COVID, and now he only recognizes if food is salty, sweet, sour or bitter."

- AlphaLaufert99

"Just wait until he gets his sense of smell back and a ton of foods smell like ammonia or literal garbage now. Yeah, that's fun... It's been 7 months for f*cks sake just let me enjoy peanut butter again!!!!!!!!!"

- MirzaAbdullahKhan

You can't take back what you've already put in.

"You can always add, but you cannot take away."

- El_Duende666

"I find people's problems usually are they're too scared to add rather than they add too much."

- FreeReflection25

"I see you also grew up white in the mid-west."

- Snatch_Pastry

Safety first!

"Not really a cooking tip, but a law of the kitchen: A falling knife has no handle."

- wooddog

"I'm always so proud of my reflexes for not kicking in when I fumble a knife."

"If I drop anything else, my stupid hands are all over themselves trying to catch it (and often failing). But with a knife the hardwired automatic reaction is jump back immediately. Fingers out of the way, feet out of the way, everything out of the way. Good lookin out, cerebellum!"

- sonyka

"Speaking of KICKING in. On first full time cooking job I had a knife spin and fall off the counter. My (stupid) reflex was to put my foot under it like a damn hacky sack to keep it from hitting the ground. Went through the shoe, somehow between my toes, into the sole somehow without cutting me. Lessons learned: (1) let it fall; (2) never set a knife down close to the edge or with the handle sticking out; (3) hacky sack is not nearly as cool as it could be."

- AdjNounNumbers

"Similarly, NEVER put out a grease or oil fire with water. Smother with a lid or dump baking soda in there (do not use flour, as it can combust in the air making things worse)."

- Metallic_Substance

How else will you know it tastes good?

"Taste the food."

- OAKRAIDER64

"Also don't be afraid to poke and prod at it. I feel like people think the process is sacred and you can't shape/flip/feel/touch things while you cook them. The more you are hands on, the more control you have."

"No, this does not include situations where you are trying to sear something. Ever try flipping a chicken thigh early? That's how you rip a chunk out of it and leave it glued to the pan until it's burnt."

- Kryzm

Here's one just for laughs.

"When you grab a pair of tongs, click them a few times to make sure they are tongs."

- Kolshdaddy

"People really overlook this one. You've gotta tong the tongs a minimum of 3 times to make sure they tong, or else it can ruin the whole dish."

- BigTimeBobbyB

If you're looking to get into cooking or to improve you technique, pay attention to these few tips.

Salt generously, add an acid to brighten things up, and don't forget to taste your food!

If all else fails, you can always order take out.

Want to "know" more? Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again. Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.

cooking

People Describe The Most Inappropriate Thing They Ever Did As A Kid

Victoria_Borodinova/Pixaba

As part of the learning process, children often do embarrassing things before they learn a little more about the world and all the different implications therein. While the inappropriate moment is usually minor and ends in laugher some instances are truly mortifying.

One such instance involved a little sister who was around 6 at the time. It was the 90s and at the height of the youth-focused PSAs (think the frying egg representing your brain). One type was a safety PSA about stranger danger. The speaker would remind the children that if a stranger tried to take you anywhere to yell “Stop, you're not my mommy/daddy" to raise the alarm.

Keep reading... Show less