system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: When someone has severe damage to a vital organ like the heart, it is often said that they "die instantly". Why is this? Doesn't it still take a couple minutes for the brain to lose oxygen and stop working?
gpt
Sudden drops in blood pressure cause instantaneous unconsciousness. Although they technically may be alive for a short period of time following that incident, they are not responsive, there's no blood flow and thus no nutrient/oxygen delivery and waste disposal, and there's no way to effectively resuscitate the injured person in what little time remains before permanent brain death. So, they are to all intents and purposes dead in every realistic sense of the word.