When you think of the most dangerous jobs you could do, the likes of stuntman and lion tamer probably spring to mind. But the jobs that actually cause the most injuries and fatalities will shock you. Read on to find out what they are.

Coming into contact with deadly diseases every single day means nursing can be a very dangerous occupation for many. The Centers for Disease Control reported 57 documented cases and 143 possible cases of occupationally-acquired HIV infection among health care personnel in the US between 1981-2010. More recently, as of 2015 the Ebola virus has claimed the lives of over 500 health care workers worldwide, with 800 contracting the disease.

Mowing lawns and potting plants might not seem like the most dangerous job around but, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 208 landscapers died during 2016 alone. Sharp equipment, power tools and environmental hazards mean there’s a higher-than-average risk of work-related injury.

From power tools to falls, the US recorded 182 construction worker fatalities in 2016. In the UK, 38 people died in the industry in the year up to March 2018.

With long lonely hours on the road, truckers are highly susceptible to crashes. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics work-related truck driver fatalities in 2016 reached 918 deaths, which was more than any other occupation that year. It was also named the most dangerous job in Australia, with 216 deaths in the year to the end of September 2017, of which 197 were fatal crashes involving trucks or buses.

Australian website LifeInsuranceFinder.com.au revealed that being a commercial fisherman is the most dangerous job in 2016 with the industry (as part of agriculture, fishing and forestry) recording 3,510 serious injuries and 44 deaths. It’s a profession where you’re more likely to die from being hit by an animal, drowning and heat exposure than any other in Australia.

It’s not the most pleasant job and nor is it the safest. In the UK 14 people died collecting, treating and disposing of waste between 2016 and 2017 according to the nation’s Health and Safety Executive's latest figures. This is more than double the 2015/16 figures, when six people in the waste and recycling were fatally injured. In the US there were 31 fatalities in 2016.

People who clean buildings are exposed to a host of dangers every single day, including chemicals, sharp objects, falling objects and even mold. In the UK 28% of workplace deaths in 2017 involved those working from a height, like building cleaners. Meanwhile, long-term exposure to cleaning chemicals can cause asthma attacks and even lung disorders. A recent report found that cleaning products can impact lung health as much as smoking a pack of cigarettes every day.

The meatpacking industry is rife with accidents, and workers risk burns, amputations and head traumas. There were 270 incidents spanning 2015 to 2017 in the US, with an average of two amputations a week, according to data from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Farm life might seem idyllic for some, but it holds very real dangers, from machine accidents to animal-related injuries. In the US 593 people experienced fatal injuries in 2016 from the agriculture, fishing and forestry sector, and a US Health & Safety Executive report states that almost half of the workers who die in the agriculture, fishing and forestry sectors are farmers. In the UK, 27 farmers died in 2016 – nearly one in five of all people fatally injured at work that year.

According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, this job involves operating self-propelled mining machines that rip coal, metal, stone and sand from a mine face and load them onto conveyors or shuttle cars. Tragically, 22 US workers died on the job in 2016.

Shopkeepers beware as in 2016 Australia recorded four deaths in the retail industry, according to safeworkaustralia.gov.au. While in the UK, on average there were 13 injuries per day in the retail sector between April 2016-March 2017 as a result of violent behaviour alone according to the British Retail Consortium's annual crime survey.

Education is the most injury-prone sector in the UK, and Secondary School teachers in particular are three times more likely to be physically attacked at work than the average UK employee according to the Labour Force Survey. From 2009-10 to 2015-16 there were on average 8,000 attacks on teachers in schools every year.

Animals are adorable but they can be unpredictable, with vets constantly at risk of bites and scratches. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, this field accounted for 10 on-the-job deaths in the US in 2016. And larger animals such as horses are responsible for dozens of deaths per year, according to the US Census.

It doesn’t sound anywhere near as risky as some of the others on this list but the latest UK Health & Safety Executive report revealed four people died in the rental and leasing industry between 2012 and 2013, with 70 people suffering from major, but non-fatal, injuries in the same period.

In the UK there were 111 deaths between 2011 and 2016 in the manufacturing industry. While in Australia, factory work accounted for 18 deaths and 16,670 serious injuries in 2014, according to LifeInsuranceFinder.com.au. The biggest causes of death were car crashes, being hit by falling objects and falls from a height. More than a quarter of the serious injuries reported were caused by muscle stress from handling heavy objects.

Mechanics, garage workers and car salespeople are often at risk in their job, mainly due to the danger of car crashes. Between 2010 and 2016 there were 48 deaths in the vehicle maintenance and repair industry in the UK.

Protecting people comes with risks as you often have to put yourself in danger. In 2016 there were 35 fatalities in the industry, 69% of which were caused by violence from another person or animal.