cracking joints?

FatherLen

does it or does it not cause arthritis?

Jaafa

Here we go.....

FatherLen

sorry if this has been talked about a lot. dont worry about it i will find out another way.

Minstrel27

Jaafa wrote: »

Here we go.....

Where are we going? To someone who will answer the question?

Jaafa

Minstrel27 wrote: »

Where are we going? To someone who will answer the question?

Not likely but I will make an attempt.....OP There evidence for both sides of the story here. Some say it does some say it doesn't. You wont likely get a clear answer either way. Its up to you to do your own research into the matter and make your own conclusion.

mardybumbum

The important thing is that it feels great.

Jaafa

Well yes that too.

FatherLen

ha it sure does........

Vorsprung

mardybumbum wrote: »

The important thing is that it feels great.

It's bloody amazing!

I sometimes "flick" out my leg, so it straightens at the knee, and simultaneously turns in. Gets a ginormous crack at the knee. Drives the ball and chain nuts!

username123

I asked my orthopediac surgeon about this a couple of years ago - my joints are all pretty cracky and have been since childhood.

His answer was an emphatic NO - natural crackiness does not cause arthritis.

He said that one of the reasons for thinking it does is that people manipulate their own joints in an unnatural way into cracking (like people squashing down their knuckles to get them to crack). There is a difference between joint manipulation and a joint passively cracking. Passive cracking - you stand up and your hip cracks for example - no problem. Joint manipulation - you force a joint into some unnatural position to make it crack - could cause damage to the joint over time and lead to arthritis.

FatherLen

thank you very much username123!
ha unfortunately i fall into the bracket that could do damage...........maybe i will stop.

Tree

Don't ask me to find where, but ive heard from a number of sources that some physician in the states cracked the knuckles on only one hand for decades, and there was no increase in joint damage compared to the normal hand.
(im sure im not hte only one who's heard this before)

aceygray

Jaafa wrote: »

There evidence for both sides of the story here. Some say it does some say it doesn't. You wont likely get a clear answer either way.

Do you have any cites that say knuckle cracking does cause arthritis? I have found two that show no correlation between joint cracking and arthritis:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1004074/pdf/annrheumd00439-0036.pdf

There was no increased preponderance of arthritis of the hand in either group

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1129752/pdf/westjmed00297-0049.pdf

The data fail to support evidence that knuckle cracking leads to degenerative changes in the metacarpal phalangeal joints in old age.

I myself crack most of my joints several times a day. I know it's really annoying for the people around me, but my joints feel uncomfortable if I don't.

opinion guy

I crack joints all the time - sometimes on purpose to relief tension -sometimes accidentally.

My 2 pence. The cracking itself is not harmful - its just the release of some local musculoskeletal tension and fibres twanging (Note I am aware they say its nitrogen escaping from joints. This may happen sometimes but I DO NOT believe this is what all joint cracking is. Not in the least because when I crack my left thumb - I can visibly see a muscle fibre twanging in my forearm and I can feel the release of tension in my thumb, wrist, forearm and elbow.)

What may be harmful however is that muscle tension itself. In others words the increased muscle tension may in time cause damage to the joints and result in arthritis.

Thus in this model - both the joint cracking and arthritis are a symptom of chronic muscle tension/imbalance around the joint.

I've been thinking on this one a long time