Does it give you rheumatism or arthritis?
People often react strongly to snapping fingers, ankles or knees. If someone snaps his finger, this gives a bad sound, while the ‘knakker’ finds it a pleasant feeling. But how harmful is it?
In some people, joints snap very easily. Others have to put in more effort. The difference is in the flexibility of the joints.
Vacuum
In the joint cavity there is a small amount of liquid in which gas is dissolved. The moisture is the lubricant of the joint, to make movements run smoothly. By pulling your finger, the cavity expands slightly and creates a negative pressure. This negative pressure creates a vacuum.
Due to the low pressure, the gases dissolved in the moisture are released. The vacuum is released and suddenly more space is created in the joint. That space is filled with gas. You hear the latter as a snap, comparable to a suction cup that you pull from the window. Many people think that the sound comes from the bones, but that is not the case. You also cannot snap a joint several times in a row. The vaporized gas must first dissolve again in the synovial fluid.
In some joints, the crack occurs in a different way. The sound can also be caused by a tendon of a muscle that shoots over something. You can compare this to the string of a guitar.
Harmful?
It sounds bad, but according to most scientists, snapping the fingers does not cause any damage. For a long time it was thought that it could lead to wear and tear or inflammation of the joints, but several studies have shown that the joints of finger-squatters are no different from those of non-squatters.
A striking example is the research of Donald Unger. This American doctor cracked the fingers of his left hand every day for fifty years, leaving his other hand alone. In 1998 he published a scientific article with the results: he did not develop arthritis and there was not even a visible difference between the two hands.
However, there are also scientists who think that it is harmful and that the joint capsule in particular can become weaker. It is safest to snap the fingers with folded hands. If you snap because the fingers or other body parts feel stiff, it is better to see a doctor or physiotherapist. You can’t solve that with cracks.
Snapping your hip or shoulder is more dangerous anyway. In doing so, you temporarily lift the shoulder or hip out of its socket. As a result, the cartilage wears down slowly, so that the bowl becomes less deep and therefore less stable.
crack
In addition to cracking, joints can also crack. There are many different causes for this. Healthy joints can crack, but cracking is also one of the symptoms in osteoarthritis. The cracking sound is caused by the structure of the cartilage and bone change.
Other causes of cracking joints are pieces of loose bone, tendons or muscles that rub against a bone protrusion and damaged tendons or muscles due to rheumatism. An accident, dislocation or pressure can also lead to cracking joints.
