Is "Cracking" bad?

Most people associate adjustments with the "Cracking" noise you make with your knuckles. And because of the spread of modern day non-facts (things you heard from someone that heard it from the internet), most people believe that "cracking" is bad for you. Here's the real story, and if you can remember some of the terms used in the description of "cracking" you just might be the hit at your next party.

Basically, "Cracking" is nothing more than the rapid release of gas in your connecting ligaments. There is a fluid called the synovial fluid inside your joints that are a lubricant for your joints. When you "Crack" your knuckles, or a Chiropractor does an adjustment, what you are hearing is the release of oxygen, nitogen, and carbon dioxide, or bubbles formed in the lubricant. This is also the reason you can't "Crack" your knuckles immediately after cracking them (I do know some people can, but that's only because the fluid is more quickly filled back into the space for some people).


So remember, the "Cracking" sound you hear when you get an adjustment, isn't the sound of bones rubbing against each other, or an actual crack of hard objects. It is merely a bubble popping. It only sounds loud to yourself because of how sound is amplified within your own body. Think of when your eating chips in a quiet room. It sounds as if the sound is so loud, everyone in the room can hear it. The sound is only loud because of how we hear internal noises.

As for the science of the Adjustment, that's a whole other discussion. But for now, don't be so afraid of the Chiropractor. If you find the right one, you will be amazed at what an adjustment can do for your life!