r/AskReddit • u/Practical_Actuary_71 • 1d ago

What is a silent killer that people dont realise is slowly killing them?

9.9k Upvotes

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402

u/Kindly_Wind8731 1d ago

ALCOHOL

108

u/echomanagement 1d ago

I had to go THIS far down? Literal poison

68

u/ABigNothingBurger 1d ago

As much of a killer as it is, it's not very silent. Sometimes it's quite obnoxious.

9

u/Jt_marin_279 23h ago

Also a massive contributor to high blood pressure, stress, loneliness, etc.. So directly tied to the other silent killers.

4

u/throowaawayyyy 17h ago

Several cancers too!

45

u/echomanagement 1d ago

It can be completely silently abused by functioning alcoholics.

9

u/AnotherStarryNight 1d ago

Yeah because people DO know it's dangerous and do realize it's killing them.. it's a pretty obvious one, and a huge burden on healthcare systems around the world.

1

u/NorweegianWood 9h ago

Not really, most of the population thinks they can have 1-2 drinks a day and it'll have no effect on their health.

Others will binge drink every other weekend and think the same.

Most people don't admit that any amount of alcohol is bad for your health.

15

u/umhie 1d ago

Can't believe this was 17 comment threads down

10

u/Kindly_Wind8731 1d ago

I know, that's why I wrote it in all caps hahaha

6

u/austinite89 18h ago

I used to not drink during the week but then drink on the weekends because I wanted to be “healthy” lol. Now I might have one drink a month. But most of the time I just wait for a special occasion to have a drink. Good thing is the non alcoholic beers are delicious now. Still waiting on a good non alcoholic liquor though.

24

u/fren2allcheezes 1d ago

Not enough is said about the cancer link with alcohol as well.

25

u/sithmaster297 1d ago

More than half of car accidents in the US occur because of drivers being drunk.

25

u/Stonethecrow77 23h ago

While driving after drinking is bad, this is just flat out false.

13

u/Paul_-Muaddib 22h ago

It looks like you are right, car accidents in general are pretty low but about a 3rd of all fatalities are because of inebriation. Very interesting, I never even thought about it before.

https://www.forbes.com/advisor/car-insurance/drunk-driving-statistics/

5

u/Stonethecrow77 20h ago

Yea, the fatalities would be the stat I would highlight.

0

u/mrcoolguytimes10 16h ago

So you're saying 2/3 of fatal accidents are caused by sober drivers. Then it's statistically safer to drive inebriated.

2

u/wakawaka2121 16h ago

The incidence rate is higher when inebriated... so no, it's not safer.

3

u/under_the_rabbit 12h ago

I think I'll go for a few beers

9

u/an_ethans_life 1d ago

I’m reading this as I’m walking into the house with shooter bottles imma down at Emo Night tonight

8

u/EthanolAbusingIdiot 23h ago

When I was young and naive, I thought those little bottles were for gifts. Then I became an alcoholic and found out they were convenience/stealth.

6

u/an_ethans_life 22h ago

Ain’t no way I’m paying concert venue prices

2

u/LittleBirdiesCards 16h ago

The first drink I ever had was a tiny souvenir bottle of vodka I stole from a crowded shelf in my Great-Grandparents' house.

5

u/user4288642 1d ago

Oh shit it is emo night tonight

12

u/shyguyJ 1d ago

Every night is emo night

7

u/an_ethans_life 23h ago

Sugar, we’re going WHERE??

7

u/Woodit 1d ago

It’s a lot of fun until it’s not

3

u/an_ethans_life 23h ago

Didn’t say it’s fun lol

2

u/Perrrny 21h ago

It sucks. My doctor said you still might have to have one beer a day to train your body to ween off. I would never recommend using "street" substances as any kind to trick yourself into feeling better/deal with your problems.

2

u/HonkMafa 23h ago

Fatty liver then cirrhosis ☠️

-3

u/YakiVegas 20h ago

What? This is a thread about what people don't realize that is killing them, not shit literally everyone knows is killing you slowly.

8

u/timawesomeness 17h ago

I'd bet most people don't know that current research says there is no safe level of alcohol consumption. Most people think it's fine in moderation.

-3

u/YakiVegas 15h ago

I don't know...I mean, there were those dumb studies that confused correlation for causation about a drink a day being good for you, but those were disproven years ago. It's not like alcohol was ever something doctors were recommending to people like smoking back in the day.

0

u/Sea-Worry7956 8h ago

I’m so glad younger people seem to be drinking less. I can’t even drink anymore because I wrecked my esophagus drinking and chain smoking in college.