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Cupping
What is Cupping ?
Cupping is a type of alternative therapy that involves placing cups on the skin to create suction. This suction is thought to improve the flow of energy in the body and facilitate healing.
One of the oldest medical texts to mention cupping tharpy is Eber’s papyrus (1550 B.C.) from Ancient Egypt, though cupping is a part of many ancient healing systems, including Chinese, Unani, traditional Korean, and Tibetan.
Greek physician Hippocrates, often referred to as the “father” of medicine, even compiled descriptions of cupping techniques.
Many believe that cupping helps balance yin and yang, or the negative and positive, within the body. Restoring balance between these two extremes is thought to help with the body’s resistance to pathogens as well as its ability to increase blood flow and reduce pain.
Cupping increases blood circulation to the area where the cups are placed. This may relieve muscle tension, which can improve overall blood flow and promote cell repair. It may also help form new connective tissues and create new blood vessels in the tissue.
What is Cupping ?
Cupping was likely first performed using animal horns. Later, cups were made from bamboo and then ceramic.
Suction was primarily created through the use of heat. Cups were originally heated with fire and then applied to the skin. As they cooled, the cups drew the skin inside.
Modern cupping is often performed using bell-shaped glass cups. They may also be made of plastic or silicone.
There are four main categories of cupping performed today:
- Dry cupping: a suction-only method
- Wet/bleeding cupping: may involve both suction and controlled medicinal bleeding
- Running cupping: involves moving suctioned cups around the body after applying oil to massage the desired area
- Flash cupping: involves quick, repeated suction and release of cups on an area of the body
Cupping may also involve the use of:
- acupuncture needles
- moxibution, or the burning of mugwort leaves
- magnets
- laser tharpy
- electrical stimulation
- water
- herbs
Subsets of cupping include:
- facial cupping
- sports cupping
- orthopedic cupping
- aquatic cupping