Last week, a German tourist fell to his death after jumping into the air for a mid-air photo in a restricted area of Peru's Machu Picchu ruins. Just one day before that incident, a Korean tourist died from attempting to take a selfie at the top of Gocta Waterfall, also in Peru.

Selfies may not be the official cause of death in these cases, but these incidents join a growing number of fatalities that have indirectly resulted from risky selfies.

Research shows that the most common cause of selfie-related deaths is falling from heights, followed by drowning. The average age of selfie accident victims is 21, with 75 percent of the victims being male. Even though women tend to take more selfies overall, the data shows that men are more likely to take “recreational risks.”

As reported by the Washington Post in January, India saw the highest numbers of selfie-related deaths in the world, prompting the country to demarcate “no selfie” zones at various tourist sites.

Unfortunately, this "death by selfie" phenomenon is not limited to tourism. This past New Year’s Eve, a college student fell to his death after scaling New York’s Four Seasons Hotel for a selfie from the facade. While many people die doing what they love, very few people believe that any amount of likes or retweets is worth risking death.

Fatalities resulting from selfies show no sign of decreasing in the near future. Instead, the phenomenon has become a worrying epidemic worldwide.