Health · Fact check

Does cracking your knuckles cause arthritis?

Rated: Mostly false 2 of 5 on the fact-check scale

Largely no — the evidence mostly does not support this claim.

FalseTrue

The claim

Cracking your knuckles causes arthritis.

What the evidence shows

Studies have not found that habitual knuckle-cracking causes arthritis. The popping sound comes from gas bubbles in the joint fluid, not from damage to bone or cartilage. Research, including a long-term self-experiment that earned a tongue-in-cheek Ig Nobel Prize, found no higher rate of arthritis among knuckle-crackers.

This summary describes a fact-check originally published by Snopes. FactGuard did not conduct this review; we summarize it and link to the original. Read the original fact-check by Snopes →