While you might fear the dark or encountering a bear in the woods, it appears that everyday items in your home could actually pose a greater threat to your safety.
A community of Redditors collaborated to address the question ‘What’s something that most people don’t realize can lead to sudden death?’ and shared some surprising hazards that could potentially result in untimely fatalities.
The responses ranged from electrocution and rust to prey animals and mixing common household ingredients like vinegar and bleach.
But one of the answers receiving the most shocked responses listed massage guns as unsuspecting culprits.
The poster explained: ‘While handheld massage guns are generally safe to use on muscles, using them on the neck can be dangerous.
‘The intense vibrations from massage guns have the potential to harm unprotected areas of the neck, and in rare instances, may even cause damage to soft tissues or symptoms resembling a stroke.’
Medical experts have long advised massage gun owners to not use the device anywhere near their spine, kidneys, prominent blood vessels and ribs.
In rare cases, massage tools can cause severe or life-threatening injuries, including fractures or joint damage, blood clots and a breakdown of muscles in the body.
Using a massage gun can also cause fractures in people suffering from weak or brittle bones and makes them more susceptible to cracks.
Medical experts have long advised massage gun owners to not use the device anywhere near their spine, kidneys, prominent blood vessels and ribs
Another seldom-thought of risk receiving some of the most reactions on the Reddit thread were horses.
One user explained: ‘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*****.’
While horses may become aggressive if agitated, by nature, they are not an overly aggressive species.
However, if the large herbivore is threatened, frightened, frustrated or in pain, it may start being aggressive towards humans.
Usually, their aggressive behavior is subtle, and they may kick, chase, biting, kicking or striking.
Humans are not as adept at reading horse behavior as horses are, and therefore may be oblivious to subtle signs of aggressive behavior.
In the United States, there are about 710 horse-riding related deaths per year however there are no national estimates for the number of fatal injuries.
The most common form of injuries include head injuries, broken bones and bruises.
Another everyday danger a lot of Redditors mentioned was brake-checking large vehicles like semi-trailer trucks that could potentially crash into your own car and cause an accident.
While aggression is a normal part of horse behavior, by nature, horses are not an overly aggressive species
Another uncommon everyday danger Redditors mentioned was brake-checking large vehicles like semi-trailer trucks that could potentially crash into your own vehicle and cause an accident
Many also highlighted the risk of slipping in the shower, which could lead to a concussion and blood clots.
This can cause severe head injuries and even death, especially among older adults.
While the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention does not provide information on the number of concussion-related deaths in the US in 2024, it did note there were 69,000 traumatic brain injury related deaths in 2021.
In the case of house and forest fires, smoke inhalation is a leading cause of death rather than the fire itself, Redditors claimed.
According to Vanessa Kerry, the World Health Organization’s special envoy for climate change and health and CEO of Seed Global Health, inhalation injuries can cause major issues in the lungs.
She told Scientific American: ‘It’s a mix of direct fine particles from burning vegetation, but [there] also can be volatile compounds from building materials and other materials.
‘So it’s a mix of gases and fine particles that can cause direct injury to the body. If your body can’t clear it, it can cause direct inflammation of the linings of your lungs, which can slough off and make it hard to breathe and require breathing support.’
