Risk Perception
It has been indisputably established that public perception of risk is poor and warped by media coverage of events. Sometime after the Twin Towers attacks a league table of risk circulated in the United States. It's veracity was not challenged and it showed, very clearly, that, at a time when a sizeable percentage of Americans were exercised by the threat of terrorists, the chance of that occurring was absolutely minute in comparison with the chance of being killed by a defective lawnmower or, indeed, shot by a toddler who had found a loaded firearm.
Part of the problem is a general lack of numeracy among people and this statement holds good for many nations other than the United States. Statistics aren't fun (for most) and why worry about them when they can only demonstrate trends and stuff, not specifically tell you about you? Overlaid on that is our acceptance of things we feel we just have to get on with - because they are part of our lifestyle or necessary for our livelihood - and non-acceptance of things we feel we should not be exposed to - or things that our government should "do something about". We may, for example, blithely get in our cars to drive long distances and give scant regard to the probability of a crash while getting very hot under the collar about muggings in our neighbourhood and the chance of being done over in the hours of darkness. One is at far greater risk when driving than when walking home at night but we mistakenly think we have far more control at the wheel than is the case, and we fear the utter randomness and injustice of a physical attack, out of all proportion to its likelihood.
I did a little climbing and took comfort in the fact that most climbers who die on a 'climb day' are killed in car crashes going to, or from, the rock face. I still got in the car and drove to the cliffs though. And here we are in the realms of cumulative risk, a subject that seems to sail straight over the heads of those who say "You're more likely to be killed in a car crash than to die of smoking", ignoring the obvious point that if you smoke and travel by car you are piling risk on risk. And if you smoke, drive and ride horses for a pastime you are exposing yourself to much greater risk than necessary.
Some of course, ignore various risks because of a pessimistic / fatalistic attitude: My paternal grandfather was a very devoted smoker (Navy Cut, Players) and drinker (Scotch). When challenged on the risks he was running he came out with an anecdote that went something like this "I was at school with a boy who joined the merchant navy and was torpedoed by the Germans in the North Atlantic in 1941. Most of the crew drowned but he hung on, was picked up by another ship and taken back to Britain where he went to hospital because of the hypothermia he got. On the day he was discharged he was killed by a bus as he crossed the road outside the hospital. So, when your time's up your bloody time's up." 'Pops' as he was known was whip thin but very strong (as was, apparently, his father, a blacksmith by the name of Adolphus). A carpenter for fifty-odd years, he remained vigorous (and very disputatious) right up to the age of 76, when it all caught up with him, and he spent the last few years in a very frail state with cardio-respiratory problems. Nonetheless, he hung on until he was 81 and it is reasonable to point out that he comfortably surpassed life expectancy for a male born in 1918.... Genetics, of course, matter hugely. They are the reason why some with healthy lifestyles die early and some with very unhealthy lifestyles (Pops) make it to old age. And we have no control over what we inherit.
Here is some hard data. Its from 2015 and, of course, we have Covid-19 now as well, which will have a noticeable affect on 2020's statistics for deaths in over 70s. However, Covid-19 apart, these official statistics of avoidable deaths (that's the key point) give an interesting indication of general risk. Two things really stand out: avoidable heart disease and cancer deaths (neoplasm). Our lifestyles and attention to our physical health are important.
Risk of avoidable death in England and Wales
Infections: 2.8
Neoplasms: 79.5
Drug use disorders: 11.2
Cardiovascular disease: 61.5
Respiratory Disease 23.3
Injuries 34.8
Other (not sure what that means but presumably includes suicide) 8.5