KU-EHS May Safety Tip: Preventable Deaths
Odds of Dying
Your odds of dying from an accidental opioid overdose continue to be greater than dying in a motor-vehicle crash
Fear is natural and healthy. It can help us respond to danger more quickly or avoid a dangerous situation altogether. It can also cause us to worry about the wrong things, especially when it comes to estimating our level of risk.
If we overestimate our risk in one area, it can lead to anxiety and interfere with carrying out our normal daily routine. Ironically, it also leads us to underestimate real risks that can injure or kill us.
It can be difficult to accurately assess the biggest risks we face. Plane crashes, being struck by lightning, or being attacked by a dog are common fears, but what about falls, the danger inside a bottle of pills, or your drive to work?
Knowing the odds is the first step in beating them. The infographic compares some of the latest odds of dying estimates. A summary table of some of the top causes of death is also provided. Please use the data details tab to explore all the odds of dying estimates.
Americans often worry about the wrong things, like being killed in a plane crash or struck by lightning. But in our lifetime, we're far more likely to be killed by the things we do every day - or things we don't even think about:
- Dying from a preventable injury (1 in 19)
- Being assaulted by a gun (1 in 238)
- Opiod overdose (unintentional) (1 in 57)
- Electrocution (1 in 14,383)
- Obtain and carry free Narcan Before the program ends!
- A fall (1 in 91)
- A severe storm (1 in 39,192)
- A motor vehicle crash (1 in 95)
- Airplane crash (too small to calculate)
- Walking down or crossing the street (1 in 471)
- Stung by a bee, hornet or wasp (1 in 44,499)
- A bicycle crash (1 in 3,102) Fireworks (too small to calculate)
- Drowning in a bathtub (1 in 5,975)
- In a flood (1 in 109,535)
