Can cracking your knuckles for a long period of time really damage you fingers?

Question

coz my dad keeps telling me it does and i read in an article it doesnt, im confused.

Answer 1

If you constantly crack them you can sometimes cause soft tissue damage and/or loose your grip in your hands, but these are often very minor and studies have shown that hardly any people that crack there knuckles suffer with arthritis in there hands later in life.

Answer 2

no it doesn't it is just fluid and gases that have built up in your joints releasing....

Answer 3

That's an old wive's tale.  There is no medical evidence whatsoever to indicate that it causes any serious damage.   However, habitual knuckle poppers did show signs of other types of damage, including soft tissue damage to the joint capsule and a decrease in grip strength.