I hear it time and time again, not only because I am a culprit myself, but also because it’s a pretty common habit among people my age. The sound is a familiar one, and every time I hear someone make it with their body, I have to do the same. If you haven’t figured it out by now (and it you failed to notice the title) I’m talking about joint cracking. This topic hits close to home because I have a weird talent: I can pretty much pop and crack every joint in my body (too much information?), and just as I was cracking my fingers after finishing an essay, I thought to myself. Is it true what they say about cracking your joints? Will intentionally making things click and pop really lead to arthritis or osteoporosis when we get older?
The answer: No. At least, it isn’t likely to.
Believe it or not, joint cracking (the most common being cracking your knuckles) is still an unexplained phenomenon. There have been many tests to try to determine why we crack our joints–whether it be intentional or not–without pain, but there are only a few theories that attempt to explain the reason behind why a sound is made. According to Johns Hopkins, joint 
cracking could be the result of “ligaments stretching and releasing” or “by the compression of nitrogen bubbles in the spaces of the joints.” Adding to that, the Library of Congress states that the sound a person hears when a joint clicks or snaps is due to gas build-up in the synovial fluid that acts as a lubricant between joints. In this fluid is oxygen, carbon dioxide, and nitrogen which, when popped rapidly releases and forms bubbles.
Now, I know what you may be thinking: if we know so little about cracking joints, how do we know for sure that it doesn’t cause arthritis and other joint-related issues? Well, we really don’t, but the studies that state joint cracking doesn’t cause arthritis is much stronger than the studies connecting the two. In my search I could only find two an article which highlighted two studies that had any causal links between arthritis and joint cracking, however, neither was very strong. One by the British Medical Journal studied the behaviors of one man in older age, and the other by the Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers simulated knuckle cracking and stated that “the energy used to crack your knuckles is enough to damage the cartilage in your joints.”
On the other hand, three other studies within that same article, which can also be viewed in more depth here and here argued the opposite. One by Robert Stuart Swezey took 28 nursing home patients that could recall if they had once cracked their knuckles and then x-rayed their hands, finding no link between the two. Another by Annals of Rheumatic Disease took 300 randomized habitual knuckle crackers and found that none of them had arthritis or osteoporosis. While the third study took two groups: one with osteoporosis and another without, then after asking whether each group had cracked their knuckles and how often, they found no connection, just like the other two.
So overall, we’ll never really know why we crack our joints without pain or why they make a sound in the first place. However, we can be pretty sure that it will have no effect on how well our body functions in the future. I know I will continue to crack away, but maybe I’ll try to be a little more conscious of it. After all, correlation doesn’t equal causation and chance is always a factor. Who knows, a discovery might be made one day that states the exact opposite, and by then it will be too late.
I crack my knuckles so often sometimes I do not even realize it and people start to look at me. It takes me a second to realize why they are staring and now that I know that it is unlikely to cause any sort of harm to my hands, I am going to keep on cracking them!
VERY engaging post, as I feel this relates to many people including myself. Guilty. I remember in 3rd grade, my best friend was showing everyone at recess that she could crack her knuckles and I’ve been doing it ever since. One day I came home doing it and my father told me to stop immediately, as this could lead to further problems in the joints in our hands, and scared me to death! Ever since I find myself spontaneously cracking my knuckles, whether in class or as a nervous tick, but after reading your thorough blog post about the effect this really has, I feel a lot more relief. When I read that the cracking may be due to nitrogen bubbles, I was even more engaged in your post, since I didn’t even have a clue what could cause it in the first place. I’d be curious to see what studies bring in the future and if us knuckle crackers out there, really are in for some joint problems in the future.
VERY engaging post, as I feel this relates to many people including myself. Guilty. I remember in 3rd grade, my best friend was showing everyone at recess that she could crack her knuckles and I’ve been doing it ever since. One day I came home doing it and my father told me to stop immediately, as this could lead to further problems in the joints in our hands, and scared me to death! Ever since I find myself spontaneously cracking my knuckles, whether in class or as a nervous tick, but after reading your thorough blog post about the effect this really has, I feel a lot more relief. When I read that the cracking may be due to nitrogen bubbles, I was even more engaged in your post, since I didn’t even have a clue what could cause it in the first place. I’d be curious to see what studies bring in the future and if us knuckle crackers out there, really are in for some joint problems in the future.
It’s weird that the joint cracking could be due to nitrogen bubbles. That is one of the last things that I could expect and I’m I read this because I always try to avoid cracking my joints and now I don’t have to worry about it as much.
As a chronic “knuckle cracker” I always wondered if what I was doing was bad for my hands. Every time I had pains on my hands I was worried that I screwed something up in my hands. I read multiple reports and different studies that tell me that cracking my knuckles doesn’t cause arthritis but it’s hard to accept. I really liked how you brought up specific case studies performed to further your point. It really makes your argument that much more believable. Furthermore, the article was well organized with a good summery of each case. What they were looking to prove and whether they proved such. One thing I would improve would be to explain a bit further all these technical terms like synovial fluid and synovial membrane. It kinda takes away from your argument when I have to stop reading and look up these definitions. Great article and interesting topic.
As a chronic “knuckle cracker” I always wondered if what I was doing was bad for my hands. Every time I had pains on my hands I was worried that I screwed something up in my hands. I read multiple reports and different studies that tell me that cracking my knuckles doesn’t cause arthritis but it’s hard to accept. I really liked how you brought up specific case studies performed to further your point. It really makes your arguemnt that much more belivable. Furthermore, the article was well organized with a good summery of each case. What they were looking to prove and whether they proved such. One thing I would improve would be to explain a bit further all these technical terms like synovial fluid and synovial membrane. It kinda takes away from your argument when I have to stop reading and look up these definitions. Great article and interesting topic.
Like you, I have been a culprit of cracking various joints in my body and in the presence of my parents have been told a similar story about arthritis. My father has arthritis so that is probably why I have had so much caution thrown to me. Many people seem to enjoy popping their joints which makes me wonder if something is released in our brains that gives us a feeling of euphoria when the actual popping occurs or if it is the sound that makes us feel certain ways. Interesting to think about.
I really like this post. I crack my joints after sitting or typing for a long time! Usually it feels great and loosens up any cramps. I do not know why it makes a popping sound maybe it is just the nitrogen bubbles exploding. All I want to add is that sometimes if I crack my joints a lot – they tend to become sore. This is directly due to the fact that I have had arthritis since I was three years old. I think there could be a connection in that sense. But as for it causing arthritis – I highly doubt cracking your joints does that. I think you picked a good topic! I know a lot of people that are curios about this too!
I really like this post. I crack my joints after sitting or typing for a long time! Usually it feels great and loosens up any cramps. I do not know why it makes a popping sound maybe it is just the nitrogen bubbles exploding. All I want to add is that sometimes if I crack my joints a lot – they tend to become sore. This is directly due to the fact that I have had arthritis since I was three years old. I think there could be a connection in that sense. But as for it causing arthritis – I highly doubt cracking your joints does that. I think you picked a good topic! I know a lot of people that are curios about this too!