cracking knuckles
- Thread starter scifes
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John Connellan
Valued Senior Member
Cos it's only the release of gas from joints
so why does it hurt me?
John Connellan
Valued Senior Member
Cos maybe you are really cracking bones off each other! I wouldn't continue doing that if it hurts!
Fraggle Rocker
Staff member
Not only does it not hurt but it feels good. The gas dissolved in the synovial fluid causes the fluid to increase in volume, creating pressure on the inside surfaces of the joining bones. This can become downright painful. Displacing the joint by a tiny amount creates a small vent where the gas can escape, relieving the pressure.
I routinely crack two knuckles on all my fingers (but not my thumbs), one on both middle toes, a couple of vague spots in both ankles, most of my cervical vertebrae, and occasionally a metatarsal or two. If I couldn't do that I'd be writhing in agony.
Apparently you don't have the problem of gas buildup in your synovial fluid. Obviously not everyone does; maybe your joints aren't as tightly sealed as ours.
It doesn't take very much force to pop a joint, in most cases not enough to feel the least bit uncomfortable. In your vain attempt to pop your joints, you're pushing or squeezing them much too far in a direction they're not designed to go.
Give it up, your joints don't pop. But since you're doing it wrong, please don't assume that it feels that way to us.
For us it's a great relief.
Cos it's only the release of gas from joints
Yes, like a bone-fart. Ahhh, so relieving.
I crack my knuckles, toes, wrists, neck, back, knees...I can't imagine NOT doing this.
John Connellan
Valued Senior Member
The only things I crack are my thumbs. Not even the other fingers. But fraggle is right, if I didn't crack them, they would eventually become quite painfull.
Fraggle Rocker
Staff member
I can't imagine allowing someone else to crack one of my joints. The motion required is so slight and precise. If they get it wrong, at the very least it will accomplish nothing, most likely it will render the joint slightly more uncomfortable than it already is, and at worst they could push or pull too hard or in the wrong direction and cause pain or even injury.
I suppose a chiropractor would know what she was doing, but they never ever work on the small joints, just the spine. I don't think their license would even permit it. (Do you Brits have chiropractors--manipulators of the spine--and is that what you call them?)