For many, the satisfying pop from cracking joints is an everyday comfort, but a recent viral simulation has highlighted a potentially dangerous side to this common habit, particularly when it involves the neck.
The chilling simulation by Zack D. Films on YouTube has vividly demonstrated what could happen when the neck is cracked too forcefully.
When you crack your neck, or any joint, what you hear is the popping of gas bubbles in the joint fluid, an effect similar to "stretching the walls of a balloon until it pops," as described by Harvard Health. However, while often harmless, forcefully cracking your neck can pose significant risks.
According to the simulation, aggressive neck manipulation could cause a tear in the lining of a blood vessel. In rare but severe cases, such a tear could lead to a blood clot which, if it travels to the brain, might block blood flow and result in a stroke.
Check out the simulation below:
Strokes, though not a common outcome, have been linked to neck cracking. The CDC notes that strokes were responsible for 39.5 per 100,000 deaths in the US in 2002, and every 40 seconds, someone in the country experiences a stroke.
The connection between such a severe medical condition and something as seemingly benign as neck cracking may seem unlikely - but it can happen.
In 2019, a 28-year-old man from Oklahoma called Josh Hader suffered a stroke under similar circumstances.
As reported by CBS News, Hader experienced immediate and frightening symptoms after twisting and popping his neck, including numbness and blurred vision, which led to a stroke diagnosis at the hospital.
"Right after I heard a pop, everything on my left side went numb," Hader told the outlet. "It started to tingle... I kind of thought I was having a stroke, but I didn't believe it."
Hader's doctors highlighted that his stroke was a rare occurrence typically seen in instances like chiropractic manipulations or physical trauma from accidents.
"Every doctor I've seen said they've never seen a self-manipulation of this type of stroke. They've seen it from chiropractic manipulation or a car wreck. But never someone doing it to themself," he said.
They advised against the practice to prevent any further incidents - something that Hader admits was a struggle as it was so natural for him.
Experts like those at Neurosurgery One strongly advise against using your hands to manipulate your neck and caution against making it a frequent habit. The potential to strain or stretch neck ligaments, which help keep the spine aligned, adds to the list of reasons to avoid neck cracking.
"Cracking your neck under any of these conditions is bad for you because it can strain or stretch the ligaments in your neck that help to keep your spine in place," the website explains. "The strain on the ligaments can cause inflammation, which causes pain.
"Loose ligaments also can allow the vertebrae to move, which can put additional pressure on discs and nerves."
I won't lie, I crack my neck multiple times a day... but I'll certainly be trying to cut back my bad habit from now on.
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