Are You an Anxious Flyer? Check out This Cool Way That Jello Can Ease Turbulence Fears

Traveling can be stressful for a myriad number of reasons, but one of the most anxiety-inducing reasons is bad turbulence, particularly if you're an anxious flyer to start with.

Thankfully, there are plenty of other anxious flyers out there, and the internet just happens to exist, so collectively we're able to find out how to find ways to combat turbulence fears!

So how does jello help fight turbulence fears exactly? (No, you read that right, jello.) An Instagram content creator explains it all!

Instagram creator @heleneinbetween explained that back in 2019, she felt nervous during a rather turbulent flight from London to Dallas. However, a helpful pilot sitting next to her explained how jello could serve as a metaphor for why turbulence isn't actually as dangerous as it feels.

So, how does the jello turbulence explanation work exactly? It's simpler than one might think! The pilot told Helene to imagine that their plane was a rock in the middle of a cup of jello, so essentially the jello serves as a visual for how much pressure is approaching the plane from all sides, keeping it the air no matter how much it, well, jiggles.

So in other words, there is simply no way to evade turbulence in the air, because the plane isn't traveling through a smooth, pressure free atmosphere. Hence why the pilot wasn't worried!

So has turbulence ever been genuinely dangerous for flyers? Helene states in her video that there's never been a plane crash that was solely caused by turbulence itself.

So here's the thing – there's no crash on record that was solely caused by turbulence, per a report from NPR. However, turbulence has led to injuries, and sadly sometimes even fatalities.

However, the majority of the turbulence related injuries on flights from 2009 to 2021 (30 passengers and 116 crew members in total over that span according to a data report from the Federal Aviation Administration) were reportedly due to the fact that passengers are crew were up and about doing something like using the restroom or helping passengers by collecting trash when the turbulence-related injuries occurred.

So yes, any form of travel does involve risk, but flying is still considered safer than driving! According to a study from Simple Flying, your chances of dying in a plane crash are 1 in 11 million, while the chances of dying in a car crash are significantly higher, with the odds being one in 5,000.

So the next time you fly, or you drive, make sure to buckle up your seatbelt and stay safe. After all, one of life's great joys is reaching your intended destination without any broken bones or headaches!

And remember — turbulence is only jello.