A priori, no danger for unrepentant crackers!
Where does the crackle come from?
Between each of your joints is synovial fluid that fills up with air bubbles when you move. Cracking your fingers is like breaking these bubbles, which make a popping sound when they burst. Then wait 20 minutes for the bubbles to re-form in the liquid.
So, osteoarthritis or no osteoarthritis?
To realize the consequence of the cracking, an American allergist doctor cracked the joints of only one of his hands every day for 60 years. At the end of the experiment, the X-ray shows that the two hands are strictly in the same condition and that the hand used does not have more osteoarthritis than the other.
Another experiment was conducted on 75 inveterate crackers and the result is clear. We do not see more osteoarthritis in crackers than in others, on the other hand we note a less firm handshake (according to the serious Annals of the rheumatic diseases ).
Assessment?
There is no risk of osteoarthritis but if you crack your fingers or other joints too much (let your imagination run wild!), you nevertheless risk putting your life in danger... Your neighbors may come up with ideas for murder!
