Tasting has become very current since Michael Phelps showed off his tasting marks at the 2016 Olympics in Rio. Of course, cupping is a very ancient form of Chinese medicine that has been around for thousands of years and has been used by various cultures around the world. Historians believe that cupping is, in fact, the oldest technique in Chinese medicine, predating acupuncture.
What are suction cups?
Suction is applied to the skin with glass, rubber, or plastic cups. In ancient times, doctors used bamboo. The vacuum action quickly facilitates the release of rigid soft tissues. Loosens and lifts connective tissues, breaks and drains stagnation, and increases blood and lymphatic flow to skin, muscles, and connective tissues. It does all of these things much more quickly and effectively than any other type of therapy, including acupuncture, massage therapy, chiropractic adjustments, medications, and sometimes even surgery.
What do the colors mean?
The change in skin color after cupping indicates many different things. Sometimes it turns orange or purple, and at other times it can turn red. Brands typically last from three days to a week; sometimes more if a person is very sick or sedentary. The change in skin color after cupping also helps determine the nature and location of a disease, but for a healthy person with healthy skin, the color of the tissue does not change at all after cupping. .
Since you can use the suction cup almost anywhere on the body surface except in areas where large blood vessels pass, such as in the groin, you can check for internal problems from outside the body. In areas where there is dead blood, lymph, cellular debris, pathogens, and toxins present in the body, the cupping will leave marks indicating that the stagnation has moved from the deeper layers of tissue to the surface. The color and pattern of the markings depends on the level of stagnation in the area. If there is no stagnation, there will only be a light pink mark that disappears in a few minutes to a couple of hours.
Sites where there is previous trauma or injury may require multiple cupping treatments to remove all stagnation. Patients will find, in follow-up treatments, that the markings will become clearer as pathogens are systemically cleared from the body. Suction cup marks are not bruised and are generally not painful. Although the cupping treatment itself can be a bit uncomfortable and the markings can look dramatic, the presence of color in the hollowed out areas ensures that the patient feels immediate relief after treatment.
Who should make suction cups?
Although cupping is a simple technique, it should only be done by an experienced physician. Although some massage therapists, chiropractors, or estheticians offer cupping therapy, they generally lack the in-depth training and experience required to apply cupping therapy safely and effectively. At best, cupping therapy by an untrained physician will be ineffective. At worst, it can cause burns, blisters, or scar tissue that cause more pain rather than provide relief.