(Bloomberg) — Drug overdoses and car accidents are more likelyto kill Americans than events such as plane crashes and cataclysmicstorms, according to a report from a safety group that said peoplefrequently misjudge the risks they take.

“Americans worry about the wrong things — for example, 865 timesmore people are killed in motor vehicle crashes than in commercialplane crashes,” Deborah A.P. Hersman, president of the NationalSafety Council, said in a statement Monday. “While 'San Andreas'was No. 1 at the box office, earthquakes are very rare events.Knowing the real odds of dying can empower people tomake better choices and result in longer lives.”

The lifetime odds of dying from a motor vehicle crash are about1 in 112, and the figure is 1 in 234 for overdosing on opioidprescription painkillers, the council said. That compares with 1 inabout 97,000 for commercial airplane crashes. For a cataclysmicstorm, the figure is 1 in 6,780.

“Making safe decisions can reduce the risksof being killed in preventable incidents,” the council said.“Wearing a seat belt, turning off cell phones anddesignating a sober driver can greatly reduce the risk of a fatalcar crash. While avoiding prescription painkillers in favor ofsafer alternatives will reduce the likelihood of a fataloverdose and eliminate a pathway to a lifetime of addiction.”

The National Safety Council is a non-profit organization focusedon reducing risks in the workplace, on the roads and in homes. Thegroup released the report to coincide with the beginning ofNational Safety Month in June.

–With assistance from Jing Cao in New York.

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