A week or so ago, a friend and I were debating over whether or not cracking your knuckles could give you arthritis. He said it can, i say it can't. He claims that when you move, your bones naturally, slowly shft out of their sockets, and by cracking them, you forcefully shove them back into place, rubbing it against the cartilage and in turn wearing it down.

 

 

 

I, however, heard somewhere that what it is is actually natural gasses building in your joints (CO2, etc.) and by cracking your knuckles, you expel the gas. This would be why you hear an occasional pop or crack in your ankle, knee, etc. sometimes when you move it. (well, I do anyways) and how my jaw occasionally pops after I haven't talked, chewed or anything with it for a while, the gas escapes when I talk and usually can't build up.

 

 

 

Are either of us correct in our explanations, and does cracking your knuckles really cause arthritis?

Hmm... tough call.

 

 

 

I don't think that it would cause long term damage (unless you dislocated your finger completely or something), but it isn't exactly a conversation starter either. I don't really do it for that reason.

This is an issue in which I feel very strongly, and I wish to impress the whole world with my opinion on this, even if it's one person at a time. It means a lot to me, this subject, it isn't respected enough among the leaders of our society.

 

 

 

Actually, I had too much cartilage as a kid. If I walked too much, my leg would hurt very painfully for several hours, until I wore the cartilage off. Maybe...

A single event is not enough to cause damage to the joint, although there is a hypothesis that prolonged joint stress due to cracking knuckles may eventually lead to a higher risk of joint damage. However, the long-term consequences of this practice have not been studied thoroughly, and the scientific evidence is inconclusive. The common parental advice "cracking your knuckles gives you arthritis" is not supported by any evidence, but habitual knuckle crackers are more likely to have hand swelling and lower grip strength.

 

 

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cracking_joints

I crack all my joints. :? Knuckles, neck, toes, and I haven't had anything worse than a pinched nerve in my neck, which hurt a lot for a while and I couldn't turn my head. So, it may have some minor effects, but I don't really care.

tbh I dont care if it gives you arthiritis in the long run.. its damn cool.

A single event is not enough to cause damage to the joint, although there is a hypothesis that prolonged joint stress due to cracking knuckles may eventually lead to a higher risk of joint damage. However, the long-term consequences of this practice have not been studied thoroughly, and the scientific evidence is inconclusive. The common parental advice "cracking your knuckles gives you arthritis" is not supported by any evidence, but habitual knuckle crackers are more likely to have hand swelling and lower grip strength.

 

 

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cracking_joints

 

Yea, cavitation, that's what I was talking about. Hmm, about that hand swelling...is it in old age or just general swelling? Because I;ve cracked my knuckles for years and haven't swelled at all, if it's in old age I would just expect it anyways lol.

Pfft I do it all the time (drives dad insane)

it gases being released when you bend your joints. Thats why you have to wait before you crack them again, you have to wait for it to build back up.

it gases being released when you bend your joints. Thats why you have to wait before you crack them again, you have to wait for it to build back up.

 

 

 

Synovial fluid, actually... I think so, anyway. :-k

Mistakes don't happen overnight. Little tiny things may bite you back in the [wagon] in the end.

 

 

 

I crack my knuckles, and I'm going to frikkin regret it. :|

No. It doesn't cause arthritis.

Honestly, doctors and scientists know so little about arthritis, that it's not even worth debating whether things like cracking your knuckles causes it or not. Absolutely no one knows for sure, or anything close to it. My best guess would be that it probably isn't the best thing for you, but it's not terrible. I try not to do it, but it does feel really nice sometimes. :P

tbh I dont care if it gives you arthiritis in the long run.. its damn cool.

 

Bravo, well said! =D>

If they need a crackin' it's pretty hard not to. My fingers don't work as well if they need to crack.

Dunno if it really causes arthritis, however... if you can hear your bones cracking, it's generally not a good thing lol.

 

 

 

I'd maybe not do it to be on the safe side. People who crack their knuckles tend to do so out of habit... it's not really necessary.

i crack my fingers so much when i do normal household things they crack by themselves :shock:

 

 

 

 

 

My sister's boyfriend has recently had to go to the doctors because of extreme shooting pains in his knuckles, hes cracked his knuckles since he was like 12 and the doctor recommended him to stop.

 

 

 

It seems obvious that it causes damage to them but not necessarily arthritis.

So I was right(er) then. Sweet. I knew his didn;t make sense :D

I hope not, otherwise i'm kinda doomed. :ohnoes: Well, I think it's a dead cert I'll be arthritic anyway, My father suffers from it at the tender age of 47, and his father does too. Ah well.

I'm not really sure if bone cracking could give you arthritis but having since known about it, stopped cracking bones in my body. I used to regularly crack my neck, toes, ankle, fingers, wrist, knees but started to get odd aching sensations in my bones. It was from this I decided it was best not to crack my bones anymore, I mean it isn't like I'm missing out on anything because of not cracking my bones, I'm (possibly) reducing the chances of receiving a painful condition later on in life. There's no harm in being cautious about it (IMO) :

Well, my understanding of knuckle-cracking (which is a habit I've adopted) is that it's just popping bubbles in the synovial fluid in joints. These bubbles form naturally from using the joints (for instance, typing on a computer).

 

 

 

Every physician I've asked has said it's not actually a bad thing and has not been linked to arthritis.

 

 

 

The results of these kind of studies among knuckle-crackers have the tendency to come out a bit skewed, though, since arthritis has so many other contributing factors...

The cracking sound is not always from gas. It is either from the contact and rubbing of bones and cartilage, but also from putting small cracks in your bones. Of course, a crack sounds harmful, but the cracks are filled in with fluid and repaired fairly quickly. So, no, it is not harmful.

Well, scientific studies seem to go in both directions.

 

 

 

I got my theory: I think that the joints become dependant to it, and start needing it in order to feel good. This is why people get addicted to cracking, and feel that they need it in order to get the pain and tension away from their joints. Pain and tension that was caused by the cracking in the first place. I think it's an addiction really.

I thought it's natural and even good to crack your joints once in a while :(

 

 

 

I can crack my back like 3 times a day, knuckles are easier to reload, I can do that maybe 5x/day.

 

 

 

Easiest to reload? I guess jaw bones. I could crack these annoying little things all day.

 

 

 

Thanks for the link though, didn't know it could be harmful. I'll definitely look into it.

I crack my neck and my fingers, my sister freaks out whenever I do it because she thinks its gross :lol: It's like biting my nails for me, I can't stop!