Does cracking knuckles make the knuckles bigger?

Answer 1

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• It doesnt make them bigger, and it doesn't harm them, its just the air being removed from in between the joints. I don't know but I HAVE to crack my back and neck or I can't move sometimes. I did suffer a lower back injury in 1993 when I fell about 12 feet at work. I landed basically 'sitting down'. Anyway, I can crack my toes, ankles (on occasion) knees, knuckles, neck, back, right elbow, and sometimes even my sturnum. Weird I know, I have relieved headaches in both other people and myself by either cracking the neck or back... Thoughts?

• I have been cracking my knuckles for as long as i can remember I'm only 22 and yes it makes then bigger i can feel the joints in my fingers huge! i don't pull them i bend them into the palm of my hand and with my other hand crack the joint closet to my nail then proceed to crack the joint above that with the thumb for that hand. I've stopped cracking them for about 2 months now and i have serious pain, I've been told its the liquid between my joints coming back (in case you don't know the pop/crack you hear when you crack your knucles is a liquid/cusion between your joints/bones to move them efficently and comfortably) So when you crack/pop you are cracking that cusion so its bone rubbing against bone! and when that cusion starts to build back up you crack it again! Its hurts for me now not to crack because i keep stopping and like a nervous twitch I forget and crack them which relieves the pain! But the long term effect will happen to the point that you cant even crack them to relieve the pain that's arthitist people! Some people who read this might not understand because they haven't experienced this yet but trust me if you've started please stop and if your like me and been doing it forever do what i do, think about that liquid/cushion popping creating you bones to rub against each other even though i forget once in a while my fingers hurt way less now that I've stopped then when i first starting to end my finger cracker.

• I am 20 i have been cracking my knuckles since i was about 6 years old and i have never had a problem yet. so if you are a person that think cracking your knuckles causes you harm your wrong and i am living prof of that.

• Yes, it will make them bigger and it usually becomes like an OCD which means its an like addiction and hard to stop. At 20 the above poster is still young enough to not have any serious problems BUT later in life there is the possibility of things like Arthritis. I've been doing it for about 6/7 years and at 29 my fingers are starting to hurt every time i do it, and hurt for a long time after i do it and hurt when i don't do it until i do it again to ease it - (creating a vicious circle). My fingers and joints feel swollen (but don't look it). Also I had no problems before i started doing it. So i have stopped. I advise you do NOT take it up, its like any other habit.

• I heard that cracking your knuckles doesn't really make them larger. Just an urban legend. Could be wrong though.

• I believe so. I had small knuckles, picked up cracking my knuckles, and they got big. I quit for about a month or two and they became small again. To test it further i cracked only one finger for a week and it got bigger. Also i have 5 friends in my group, one cracks there knuckles and there huge. The rest who do not have small. Some people may not suffer from it... but i believe cracking your knuckles does add to making your knuckles bigger. It depends on the person, but for the most case, yes.

• If you want to try and make your knuckles bigger try lightly hitting a solid surface like a wall, your bones will re-heal and case over, also it kills the nerves so you can hit harder without it hurting as much. But cracking them does not lead to bigger or stronger knuckles.

• I used to crack my knuckles and they used to be small and I cracked them for about 3 years and now they are big. i quit now and they don't get small agin! now that I stoped its like a craving and I gotta mingle with my fingers insted of cracking them. My suggestion is don't start and, if you have, stop.

• Yes, it does make them bigger and it can cause you to have arthritis when you are older so I would advise you to stop doing it because it is kind of addicting. My hands hurt all the time now due to cracking my knuckles. Now that I'm older it causes me to have severe pain in my hands and fingers!

• No, it doesn't. My mom is 53 and she has been cracking her knuckles since she was 7 and no problems.

• I say it does make your knuckles bigger. I'm only 13 and started cracking them when i was 9 and they are fat and don't fit into my mom moms wedding ring very well.

• Actually, it does not make them bigger. there's what I believe a wall of mucus or something between the knuckle and the finger. pull your finger as hard as you can to test it out. you can also see like a little hole between the knuckle and finger when you pull it. I punched walls and now my knuckles are bigger, I tested this with my right, now my right knuckles are bigger than my left knuckles. My right knuckles are also more harder.

• I don't think that popping your knuckles makes them any bigger I am 11 and i have been popping my knuckles since i was 7. When you pop your fingers a gas (nitrogen?) is released and that is what makes the popping sound. Yes, I do have slightly larger knuckles than my friends its not even noticeable though. I have always had slightly larger knuckles though. also you feel immediate relief and you feel more supple. I also pop my neck and back.