4/29    Is it myth or reality that cracking your knuckles or other parts of
        your body is bad for you?
        \_ What I was told by a doctor years ago: the 'pop' sound is the
           noise from pressure buildup in your knuckles being released.
           Overall this is no big deal but over many many years you could in
           theory damage the joints not due to popping them per se but only
           because you're adding additional and unnecessary wear.  So what I
           got out of this is it's not a big deal but it's better if you don't.
           \_ I've been cracking for the past 20 years.  I tried getting rid
              of the habit but I couldn't.  -- !orig poster
           \_ Isn't that much less wear than playing the piano or typing?
        \_ I started cracking my knuckles about 5 years ago and wasn't able
           to kick the habit until just recently. I finally made myself
           stop because I felt that I noticed general aches and pains in
           the areas I was cracking (which had grown to include all fingers,
           wrists, thumbs, elbows, ankles, etc etc) When I first stopped
           there was more soreness since I wasn't able to crack and release
           the pressure, but after a couple weeks, I think it feels much
           better than before.
        \_ what's the oddest joint you can crack? I can sometimes crack
           the ones between my ribs and my sternum
           the ones between my ribs and sternum