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Should you stop cracking your knuckles?
- abstractspoon 2mo agoBetteridge says?
- dgritsko 2mo agoTL,DR: No, unless you're doing it so hard that you're straining your joints. But don't crack your neck.
- deleted 2mo ago[deleted]
- ranger_danger 2mo ago> don't crack your neck The article makes a point to mention specifically that excessive/forceful neck cracking can be dangerous, but then switches to just "Cracking your own neck is not recommended"... but to me it sounds like they're referring more to the forceful kind, such as the manipulations on youtube they reference. I suppose it's like asking people to stop using q-tips... they're probably not going to, and the amount of people accidentally injured from either seems to be quite low.
- s1artibartfast 2mo agoYeah, and with the q-tips, it seems trival to do it safely. For some reason, be aware or careful always gets compressed to avoidance
- lokar 2mo agoYouTube has some pretty awful videos of ear canals full of cotton fibers. Touching the eardrum is not the only risk.
- sublinear 2mo agoAnd you think YouTube represents the average user of q-tips? Even when YouTube has videos uploaded by doctors having to put up with this kind of stupidity, it doesn't change the fact that hardly anyone does that. The vast majority of stuff uploaded to YouTube isn't even that. It's losers trying to get views.
- AngryData 2mo agoI mean it is pretty easy to find all sorts of people misusing or poorly using common hygiene products. Everyone I know uses q-tip in their ears and none have ever had a problem with it. To me it would be like not using toilet paper because some people aren't smart enough to not scour their ass raw.
- genewitch 2mo agoi've been cleaning the insides of my ears since before my mom said "nothing smaller than your elbow in your ears" and "nothing smaller than a fencepost;" and my PCP looks in my ears 4+ times a year and has never said anything - either way, do or don't or gross or nice.
- georgemcbay 2mo ago> For some reason, be aware or careful always gets compressed to avoidance The reason is legal liability, generally. If you sell Q-Tips and tell people to be careful when sticking them in their ears you're likely to be held legally liable when someone isn't careful because there will be infinite wiggle room for them to claim you didn't specify the safe use clearly enough. If you sell Q-Tips and tell people not to put them in their ear (even though you know that's why most people are buying them) then when someone sues you for messing up their ear you can tap the words on the box and say "well, we told you not to do that".
- alt227 2mo agoThere is never any reason to put q-tips in your ear. Ear drops are infinitely better.
- ElijahLynn 2mo agoThis is good to read about, and nice that it has and research referenced. It's interesting to know that it's gas collapsing. And nothing to do with the bone rubbing. And it makes you wonder what chiropractors are actually doing when they're popping your back... It's probably not doing anything to help you with your pain. And it's probably not actually adjusting anything.
- selectodude 2mo agoIf a chiropractor could adjust something by pushing on your bone, imagine what tripping and falling would do.
- BenjiWiebe 2mo agoTripping and falling can mess you up for a long time. And I don't mean broken bones.
- danpalmer 2mo agoSo can a chiropractor!
- bryanrasmussen 2mo agoI think that's the joke?
- UncleOxidant 2mo agoJust tripping a bit messed up my SI joint pretty bad a few years back. It didn't even seem serious at the time, just a bit of a stumble off of the curb, but the next day I could barely get out of bed and was in pretty serious pain for several days. Couldn't go up stairs and had a tough time getting my pants on. Still acts up sometimes.
- deleted 2mo ago[deleted]
- ghosty141 2mo agoThis can definitely happen, I had a like crooked hip for a few days after I bumped into a table while lifting something. I dont think this could ever result in something good though like chiropractors claim.
- analog31 2mo agoNot in my house. It's annoying.
- anigbrowl 2mo agoI have bad news for you about what happens your joints as you get older
- analog31 2mo agoI am older. ;-)
- PeterHolzwarth 2mo agoSorry to see the down votes you are getting. I am an inveterate knuckle-cracker, but I very much understand that a subset of people find it unpleasant and irritating to hear.
- stinos 2mo agoI know right. Even makes me feel like the person doing it doesn't respect my personal space by making a sound whereas they could also just be quiet. Qualifies as misphonia probably; I feel like the strength of my reaction is unwarranted by something others seem to barely register or at least simply ignore.
- tapland 2mo agoBeing in discomfort because my hands feel stiff and under tension is also annoying. It's not like I'm doing it for fun? Are people actually doing this as a fun thing because there's nothing better to do?
- eth0up 2mo agoBruce Lee cracked his knuckles a lot, and he died in his 30s. He was in great shape too. But I think it's mostly just escaping gases. Edit: ^ is my way of asking why this is on HN, which I never do, cause then someone could ask the same about me.
- not_a_bot_4sho 2mo agoYup. Bruce Lee drank water. He died. Anyone who drinks water will eventually die. It's a fact.
- deleted 2mo ago[deleted]
- codetiger 2mo agoAnother question, has anyone noticed cracking knuckles being contagious like yarning? I often crack my knuckles and quite often see others noticing and doing it themselves.
- modeless 2mo agoThis is a bit weird, but I started getting mild wrist pain from computer use in college, and I credit two things with reversing it. One was rock climbing which strengthened my forearms and wrists, and the other was developing a habit of cracking my wrist joints. I stopped rock climbing many years ago but I continue to crack my wrists to this day. The habit causes me to flex and stretch my wrists every so often while I'm working and I really think that has helped prevent the development of repetitive strain injuries from mouse and keyboard use.
- Markoff 2mo agoI've had serious issues with my wrist in June (after decades of sitting in front of computer for most of the worktime), it hurt when bent or when using it for almost any load. I tried painkiller cream (don't think it helped), wrist brace (pretty much impossible to use mouse with it), wrist exercises (bending/stretching arm) didn't help. I switched from traditional mouse (HP 255 dual wireless) to my wife's Logitech Lift Vertical (she didn't use and bought based on my recommendation anyway, so replaced with my HP) and the pain/issues were gone in ~2 weeks, not sure if it was thanks to the vertical mouse or if it would gone by itself, but just to be safe I keep using vertical mouse. Later I went to preventive check with my kid to their pediatrician, amusingly noticed he is using exactly same mouse. Btw. how do you crack your wrist (you mean sudden movement to left/right/up/down)? I crack finger joints, but would never think of cracking the wrist.
- kstrauser 2mo ago[dead]
- zdragnar 2mo ago> Btw. how do you crack your wrist (you mean sudden movement to left/right/up/down) Apply a bit of tension to your wrist by closing your fist and squeezing gently as if you were gripping something in your hand, then rotate your hand in a bit. Guaranteed pop for me if I haven't done it in a bit. The motion follows the wrist's normal movement, which is different to how I crack my fingers- those need to be twisted perpendicular to the normal after curling slightly. No sudden movement required at all.
- MiroslavPokorny 2mo agoReally BBC ?
- pcblues 2mo agoAny muscle, back and joint pain should first be met with mild strengthening, mild weight loss and mild exercise. It's like turning your computer off and on. Mostly the problems go away. Then check for other things :) Keep remembering to relax and move, from your fingers to your wrists and shoulders. And keep trying different set-ups and equipment if you can. There is a pretty magic set-up for most people. 30+ years myself into being on a computer nearly all the time personally and professionally. Back is starting to hurt again. Time to take my own advice again :)
- deleted 2mo ago[deleted]
- earth-tattoo 2mo agoMy lower back pain resolved automatically after I lost 15 kgs (100 to 85).
- wingworks 2mo agoSame things for me, but I was already "normal" weight, but fixed my lower back pain was... exercising. Back exercises, not just walking. Go to a gym and get a plan made out. You don't need to become the next hulk. If you sit all day, as you get older you can get away with less and less, at some point you need to start exercising (and not just 1 type, a range), your bones don't just hole up your body on their own, building muscle around them fixes a surprising amount of Aches and pains you get as you age. Maybe it's just me but I always saw gym people are the crazy bodybuilder people, but in this modern day in age most people need some level of gym (a lot of it you can do at home too with minimal gear). *Talking to people sedentary lower back pain people.
- joshspankit 2mo agoThe alignment of the lower stomach muscles (and them being out of alignment due to weight-related issues) is not talked about enough when it comes to low back pain
- mythrwy 2mo agoI was getting a bit stiff recently and thought it might be old age creeping up. I started sleeping on the floor for a few nights on a doubled thick blanket for slight padding and after the third night (first two were a little rough) I sprang up like an 18 year old and felt like my posture had been improved all day long. We spend a lot of time in bed and most beds are too soft and lead to distortions is my current theory. I'm thinking about replacing my mattress with one of those reed mats Japanese sleep on.
- lwde 2mo agoMy grandpa (he was 10 when he was liberated from the Nazis by the US and remaining French troops) told me that a French general would always crack his wrists when someone didn't hurry up. Sometimes with drastic consequences. That is my memory of his story about it, whenever I hear that..
- ofalkaed 2mo agoWithin a few minutes of picking up a guitar my fingers start to stiffen up, I crack them and then all is well, been doing this for 30 odd years now and the joints of my hands are some of the few which don't cause me problems at this point in my life. I never could crack my knuckles before I started playing guitar and if I stop playing for a few weeks, I cease being able to crack my knuckles. These articles on knuckle cracking never seem to say anything but state, but sort of maybe could be but your aunt is almost certainly wrong unless or maybe in certain exceptions. For the majority of people I think we crack our knuckles for the same reason we often stretch when we get up, it relieves a tension that needs relieving.
- saidnooneever 2mo agothere are 2 type of cracking. from guitar i have same, its ok, some fluid goes out because ur tendons are longer and there is some space. something like that (i am not medical person ofc). then there is 'forced' cracking, which will be more difficult to do because its actually going to crack things that are un healthy. it destroy some soft crap between the bones. both are not healthy but first is much less destructive and wont lead to chronic issues as fast/often as the later which much more often has that result later.. the second forced one u rly need to put some pressure or pull them hard etc its not about getting rid of that stiffness u talk about. i did that for 15 years and my fingers/hands are fine. (stopped playin so that also went away eventually, mostly)
- snarfy 2mo agoThe tension is in the fluid with gas compressed into it. Cracking causes a suction that pops the gas out, and now you have a bubble. Maybe that bubble is supposed to be there.
- firebot 2mo agoHighly agree with the article. If you don't have neck issues, don't pop that shit. Especially by twisting. Pulling sideways left or right, you're probably fine. Palm to chin and the other hand twisting the neck? Risky!
- amelius 2mo agoHow often can this cracking be done at a time? Does the gas escape? Does it need time to form? And why can some people do it and others not?
- Hendrikto 2mo agoThere is definitely a cool down between being able to crack joints. But it is very subjective, and also dependent on your posture, etc.
- throwaway314155 2mo agoOver my dead body.
- deleted 2mo ago[deleted]
- bsenftner 2mo agoI'm in my 60's, and I crack my knuckles dozens if not hundreds of times a day. I started very young, and I do every joint on both hands, every finger joint all the way up to the wrist. This is my hands while I deep think, and I think a lot. I'll do one hand, then the other, and go back to the first hand and repeat. Due to this habit, I have researched the cause of the crack, and this article is absolutely nothing new whatsoever. The same information I've been reading for 50 years, since I was first "ordered" to stop. For the record: zero issues. Zero ramifications beyond "stop that!" verbalized endlessly through out my life. "No."
- t-3 2mo agoSo, I can crack the 2nd and 3rd joints of my fingers just by flexing them. My thumbs don't crack, but I can push the first joint through the range of motion until it locks and pushes the knuckle out the palm side. I can also push my shoulders out of their sockets, getting about another 2 inches of reach. Are my fingers and shoulders just strangely double jointed or is this something different?
- badduck 2mo agoI have the exact same, and my doctor has told me I have [hypermobility](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypermobility_(joints) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypermobility_(joints))
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- ButlerianJihad 2mo agoCracking one's knuckles has been a thing that men do, that is: only a minority of women would be engaging in this, but men would pick it up in groups and it would become a custom. And of course, boys at a younger age would emulate the elder men, and so you had boys cracking their knuckles, and doing it at home, in front of their sisters and their mothers, and doing it in school in front of their teachers. And it is a blue-collar activity; something considered uncouth for the genteel knowledge-worker to do, except if you're acting in solidarity with the manual laborer, and you crack your knuckles as you sit down at the keyboard to type. So the cracking of knuckles annoys people who don't do it, and it annoys women, and it annoys people in authority over young boys. So you want them to stop, and you want to regulate men's bodies and control what we do with our bodies. But you cannot tell us all the time "because I said so" or God forbid, "because it annoys me", because that can eventually achieve the opposite result. So the medical myth of developing arthrosis and hurting your bones and damaging your joints, those were "old wives' tales" and "white lies" that were told in order to scare boys into stopping the activity. And perhaps even to scare husbands and employees into stopping. They tell men to stop spitting on the floor, to stop picking their nails with a pocket knife, and usually a medical excuse arises, because this is a higher authority that will terminate any individual choice or discretion in the way we treat our bodies.
- KayEss 2mo ago[dead]
- thisisauserid 2mo agoMy knuckles no longer crack when I'm in ketosis. I assume it's inflammation related but I've never heard anyone else mention this though.
- JoelMcCracken 2mo agoSo, I injured my left index finger to the point of tendon interruption. It was approx 2018. I was fortunate enough to have surgery that repaired it to near 100% extension. So, I clearly have no synovial fluid at that joint. The tendons were in it, and so by necessity it was also violated. I just popped that knuckles, and it sounds exactly like the others. Anyone have any ideas?
- kingkawn 2mo agoi attended a prestigious US medical school, everyone there was as in the dark as everyone here
- mpalczewski 2mo agoSome kids cracked their knuckles. It annoyed some older adults, and instead of telling them to stop they made up some bullshit reason. Classic non assertive behavior. The kids, being kids, believed them. They continued believing them into adulthood. Thus, it became a myth that was passed down.
- NotAstroturfin 2mo agounsure why we're forgetting some kids do things even more when told it's annoying.
- ShinyLeftPad 2mo agoBecause kids never had monopoly on violence in this relationship, their parents did
- NotAstroturfin 2mo agoso then never give up on telling them to do that thing that annoys you directly, and you're likely non-assertive if you figure a different way is more immediately effective to get your way, this is a funny conversation
- ShinyLeftPad 2mo agosorry can't parse your suggestion or see relevance
- mpalczewski 2mo agoLeverage, consequences and assertiveness are far better skills to learn when dealing with people including children rather than lies, shame and guilt.
- NotAstroturfin 2mo agoSome things become too annoying to want to have the same talk about & deal with too many times, I'm sure you've had that, doesn't make you non-assertive. it's not unfathomable that someone gave up at their 20th time to come up with such a scheme in the story about storymaking that you figured happened
- fisian 2mo agoDonald L. Unger got an Ig-nobel prize for cracking the knuckles on only one hand for 60 years. n=1 but evidence over a very long time
- port11 2mo agoShould the title be “knuckle cracking is mostly benign” because journalism shouldn’t bury the lead? More at ten. In other news, media outlets continue to struggle with readership, should they stop debasing the profession?
- Anon84 2mo agoWhat about wrists, knees, etc? My joints all “pop” easily
- LorenPechtel 2mo agoI keep reading this same concept and I keep questioning whether they have the whole story. I'm definitely in the group where cracking gives temporarily increased mobility, but it's more than that. A joint which is bothering me will most likely feel better if cracked and this can be the difference between very painful to walk, then my knee cracked, instantly the pain was gone. And usually, a joint which is actively being used will not crack--but if my knees are complaining about a downhill stretch they will feel a lot better if I can crack them. Also, I can sometimes feel a difference in how a joint moves. It just feels smoother when cracked. I don't understand it but I've wondered if it was somehow tiny bubbles (think cavitation) that don't form if the gas was removed by a crack.
- rimworld 2mo agoAnother example of the more you look into root causes; the less we know.
- YeGoblynQueenne 2mo agoWhat is it with all those articles that insist I've been doing something, or that I think something is true, or whatever? No, I shouldn't stop cracking my knuckles. I don't crack my knuckles. Stop assuming all those stupid things about me, articles.
- plumbees 2mo agoon this day, hn made thousands crack their knuckles
- NeoByte 2mo ago[dead]
- agenticworldcup 2mo agoIn 7th grade there was this dude who would ... wait for it... crack his back during class. Everyone would hear it. The people behind him would see someone turn 180 degrees. Twice. Then he'd go back to listening like nothing happened.