5 ms·
In my old age also (36), one of my ankles pops every time going up (not down) stairs. I also, crack my knuckles, fingers, neck numerous times throughout the day
by andegre 11y ago
In my old age also (36), one of my ankles pops every time going up (not down) stairs. I also, crack my knuckles, fingers, neck numerous times throughout the day. It's more of a habit now, versus "feeling" anything.
I'd love to know, in laymans terms, the repercussions to doing this. As far as I could gather from the article, it doesn't sound like any long-term effects.
One other question I have, though, is why is it "easier" to crack these parts over time? The more I do it, the easier it is to repeat in the future. Am I just creating this space, and making it easier to "fill" with every "distraction", as the article called it?
- rosser 11y agoDr. Donald Unger won the 2009 Ig Nobel for demonstrating (N=1) that knuckle-cracking doesn't lead to arthritis, by cracking the knuckles of one hand daily for 60 years, and never cracking those of the other. http://tech.mit.edu/V129/N41/ignobels.html http://tech.mit.edu/V129/N41/ignobels.html
- andegre 11y agoLike I said, for someone that does this NUMEROUS times a day, that is some EXTREME self-control to be able to only do it to one hand that long.
- Crito 11y agoWhen I don't crack my knuckles regularly, they start to feel extremely stiff and experience a dull pain. There is no way I'd be able to stop myself from cracking one of my hands for that long. That really is extraordinary self-control.
- kbenson 11y agoThere was an Ig Nobel winner who did some work on this[1]. A doctor that cracked the knuckled on one hand and one hand only for decades, and found no discernible difference. 1: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/crack-research/ http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/crack-research/
- derefr 11y agoSomething that might be enlightening: taking an mucokinetic—a drug that increases and dilutes mucus, e.g. guaifenesin—increases cracking. Presumably sinovial fluid qualifies as "mucus."
- jamii 11y agoThere is some evidence that lack of sideways flexibility in the joints contributes to synovitis in climbers. A common recommendation is to regularly twist and stretch the finger joints like this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMO__OrzM_U https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMO__OrzM_U . Perhaps cracking the joints has a similar effect.