October 5, 2024

The Game of Life and How it Ends

Odds-of-Dying

The Game of Life, and How it Ends

Let’s see if the odds are in your favor.

Lifetime odds of death by cause:

Most Americans won’t die of any of the below causes.

But about 56 million will die of…
Heart disease and cancer: 1 in 7
Chronic lower respiratory: 1 in 29

And motor vehicle incidents (1 in 112) will claim about as many as intentional self harm (1 in 103)

While around 4.7 million present day Americans will due of Unintentional poisoning by and exposure to noxious substances (1 in 119)
And falls (1 in 152)

Assault by firearm will claim about a 890,000 (1 in 356).
Much more than accidental firearm discharges, which clocks in at 48,000 (1 in 6,509).

There’s a chance you’ll be on the street.
Motor vehicle incidents: 1 in 112
Car occupant: 1 in 492
Pedestrian: 1 in 723
Motorcycle rider: 1 in 922

Though your safest bets are bikes, planes and spacecraft:
Pedalcyclist: 1 in 4,974
Air and space travel incidents: 1 in 8,321

Around 609,000 people can expect to die in one of these unsavory ways:
Unintentional drowning and submersion: 1 in 1,043
Exposure to fire, flames, or smoke: 1 in 1,418
Choking from inhalation and ingestion of food: 1 in 3,649

At least mother nature won’t kill many:
Exposure to excessive natural heat: 1 in 8,321
Exposure to electric current, radiation, temperature and pressure: 1 in 12,174
Contact with sharp objects: 1 in 37,566
Contact with heat and hot substances: 1 in 62,608
Contact with hornets, wasps and bees: 1 in 75,852
Cataclysmic storm: 1 in 83,922

And your much likelier to be killed by a dog than a venomous snake:
Bitten or struck by dog: 1 in 103,798
Venomous snake: 1 in 1,224,099[4]

Similar numbers of people will be legally executed as well be killed by lightning:
Legal execution: 1 in 96,203
Lightning: 1 in 136,011

Or you could die in a terrorist attack (1 in 256,410)[3]
A number comparable to your chances of being crushed to death by your own television(1 in 253,205)

Though the chances of just furniture (1 in 1,346,153) or appliances crushing you (1 in 2,025,641) are much more slim.

But it really all depends on your age

Top ten causes of death by age:

<1: Congenital anomalies, short gestation, SIDS, Maternal pregnancy complication, placenta cord membrane, unintentional injury, respiratory distress, bacterial sepsis, neonatal hemorrhage, circulatory system disease
1-4: Unintentional injury, congenital anomalies, malignant noplasms, homicide, heart disease, influenza/pneumonia, septicema, perinatal period, chronic low respiratory disease, benign neoplasms
5-9: Unintentional injury, malignant neoplasms, congenital anomalies, homicide, heart disease, influenza/pneumonia, septicemia, benign neoplasms, chronic low respiratory disease, cerebro-vascular
10-14: Unintentional injury, malignant neoplasms, suicide, congenital anomalies, homicide, heart disease, chronic low respiratory disease, influenza/pneumonia, benign neoplasms, cerebro-vascular
15-24: Unintentional injury, homicide, suicide, malignant neoplasms, heart disease, congenital anomalies, influenza/pneumonia, cerebro-vascular, chronic low respiratory disease, HIV
25-34: Unintentional injury, suicide, homicide, malignant neoplasms, heart disease, HIV, diabetes melitus, cerebro-vascular, congenital anomalies, influenza/pneumonia
35-44: Unintentional injury, malignant neoplasms, heart disease, suicide, HIV, Homicide, liver disease, cerebro-vascular, diabetes melitits, influenza/pneumonia
45-54: Malignant neoplasms, heart disease, unintentional injury, liver disease, suicide, cerebro-vasclar, diabetes melititus, HIV, chronic low respiratory, viral hepatitis
55-64: Malignant neoplasms, heart disease, chronic low respiratory disease, diabetes melititus, cerebro-vascular, unintentional injury, liver disease, suicide, nephritis, septicemia
65+: Heart disease, malignant neoplasms, cerebro-vascular, chronic low respiratory disease, alzheimer’s disease, influenza/pneumonia, diabetes melititus, nephritis, unintentional injury, septicemia.

Total deaths by age bracket:

<1: 19,229
1-4: 3,645
5-9: 2,358
10-14: 3,128
15-24: 28,677
25-34: 32,740
35-44: 69,448
45-54: 139,380
55-64: 220,404
65+: 1,471,011

Total: 1,990,020 per year
(From 2003)
That’s 1 in 145 whose time is up, every year.

Such is the game of life!

Odds-of-Dying

Citations: