While the act of masturbation itself is highly unlikely to kill you, certain practices employed by people during this process to enhance their pleasure can be quite lethal, a lesson some learn the hard way.
According to German magazine Focus, while officially only one or two Germans perish annually while masturbating, a large number of such deaths end up unreported as relatives of the deceased often consider the circumstances too shameful to report.
The most common cause of death appears to be hypoxyphilia or autoerotic asphyxiation – a practice that involves a person deliberately restricting the flow of oxygen to their brain in order to enhance sexual arousal.
One such incident took place in December in Hesse where the body of a man was found chained in his own basement, with local authorities concluding that the death occurred due to an "autoerotic accident."