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"facebook dialogPinterestCredit: Noel Feans\n\nMom told you not to, but you went on cracking those knuckles anyway, didn't you, sport?\n\nWell, rebel, your act of preteen disobedience\u2014which is likely now a few-times-a-day habit\u2014is not to going to give you osteoarthritis.\n\nCracking your fingers or (gag) toes, is simply you forming\u2014then popping\u2014an air bubble in your synovial fluid, the gooey stuff that gathers in the cavities of your digits and joints.\n\nAnd while this oft-cited study found that the practice doesn't increase your risk of developing arthritis as you age, researchers did find that some (but not all) elderly knuckle-crackers have slightly weaker grip strength than non-crackers. That said, this study came out well before improving hand strength (via weights, golf, tennis-ball squeezing, etc.) became standard in geriatric care.\n\nIn short, while you risk skeeving out your cube mates, you digit crackers should be okay in the long haul.\n\n\u2014 Dawson is a magazine writer and editor and a regular contributor to  Details.\n\n\u2022 \u2022 \u2022"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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