While cracking you back or neck may create temporary relief from tightness or stiffness, you are likely causing more problems than you are solving. Cracking your neck or back stretches your ligaments, which will not return to normal if stretched excessively.

As a result, your spine can become unstable, which can cause a host of problems from spinal arthritis to decay or degeneration to damage.

If you feel like you need to crack your back or neck, there’s an underlying problem that needs to be addressed. The body’s natural reaction to misalignment of the spine is to tighten the muscles around the area to protect itself. Pain or tightness is your body sending the message that the spine is out of alignment.

The cracking noise you hear is the joints releasing fluid or gas within the joints. If you hear a cracking noise during normal stretching, it’s fine as long as there’s no pain. But if you crack your back regularly on purpose, you can damage the area even more.

A properly aligned spine shouldn’t feel like it needs to be cracked. If you do feel the need continuously, it’s time to get professional help.

Our goal at Hands On Health Care is to find the core problem of your back and neck pain, so you can take steps to relieve and eliminate it with proper exercise and treatment. Don’t live your life in pain. Call us today to learn more.