Cupping Treatment has become a “hot topic” worldwide. This is after three-gold-medalist Michael Phelps was captured in photos of receiving Cupping Treatment and when he was seen with obvious marks on his body when winning the gold medal. These showed that the Cupping Treatment played a huge role in improving Phelps’s results.
Not too long ago, people shook their head with rejection for Cupping treatment because of bruise marks caused by cupping. Of course, there are others, who got the treatment after receiving explanation and persistent convincing from Dr. Park, coming back for pain relieving effect and relaxation, saying how “Cupping treatment is addicting.” Especially, Western athletes with frequent injury and chronic pain find eastern Cupping treatment as an appealing pain control method.
Cupping Treatment can be divided into Wet Cupping and Dry Cupping. Wet Cupping is releasing of blood, where after blood-letting, stagnated blood and unnecessary fluids in the body are excreted for the promotion of smooth flow of Qi. Dry Cupping refers to Cupping where blood-letting is not required. It is excellent in improving muscle pain without any bleeding. Athletes use this Dry Cupping methods to relieve fatigue after workout.
The principle of Cupping is a treatment that stimulates the muscles and capillaries with suction force. The cup is placed on the skin, and a negative pressure is created as the air is sucked out. This stimulates the appropriate area of the connective tissue while inducing slight damage on the capillaries and blood cells. This is the reason there are marks leftover in the body after the cupping therapy. Because the cups induce light damage on the capillaries, the body promotes self-healing of restoring and regenerating the endothelial cells of the vessels by introducing new blood.
This brings about immune response associated with infection, thus improving the affected area as well as the systemic circulation. In summary, after a light damage is inflicted on the connective tissue with absorption, cupping therapy utilizes the physiological mechanism of healing that damaged tissue. By this principle, cupping therapy promotes smooth circulation of blood in the muscles and supplies oxygen for muscle pain relief. It also helps relief muscle stress rapidly by decomposing uric acid and lactic acid, and it is effective in restoring muscle damage.
Not only does Cupping alleviate muscle pain, but it also alleviates effectively Bell’s Palsy and shingles. It already has been presented in many scholarly papers as being effective in restoring withering muscles due to facial nerve palsy. What is more surprising is that our ancestors, who have known that frequent stimulation on the appropriate points promote circulation of the whole body and the effect in preventing diseases by improving the immune system, have been using Cupping therapy by using this scientific principle.
Although Cupping therapy is a simple and safe treatment, there is bleeding in Wet Cupping and there is a risk of muscle or skin damage or infection of bacteria or virus. Therefore, receiving treatment in the appropriate points and muscles from a licensed Acupuncturist is very important.
Published by KoreaTimes under <Health Column> on August 28, 2016.