Have you been wondering what are those red spots on the shoulders and backs of Michael Phelps and other Olympians? We finally have an answer- the ancient art of ‘Cupping’. Cupping is a therapy which was used in ancient times in Middle Eastern and Asian countries. In the therapy round glass suction cups are warmed and put on parts of the body which are sore. The vacuum created by the glass cup is believed to stimulate muscles and blood flow which calms the pain. Swimmer Michael Phelps, gymnast Alex Naddour and Pavel Sankovich have been seen with the marks. Belarus’ Sankovich and former Olympic swimmer Natalie Coughlin even posted a picture on social networking site Instagram.
Naddour told USA Today that he had bought a cupping kit online. “That’s been the secret that I have had through this year that keeps me healthy. It’s been better than any money I have spent on anything else,” Naddour was quoted as saying. Michael Phelps, whose shoulders were dotted with purple marks while he lead his 4×100 freestyle relay team to a gold medal, had in a commercial showed parts of the cupping therapy. In Hollywood, actresses Jennifer Aniston, Gwyneth Paltrow and Jessica Simpson have been seen with those marks and for the first time it has entered the Olympics. There are mentions of this ancient form of therapy in ancient Greek and Egyptian texts.
In China it was used for the flow of ‘qi’ which means ‘life force’. Cupping therapy in the current world is used for people suffering all many kinds of diseases and pain, including cancer pain.The athletes seem to have gone for dry cupping which is a non-bleeding therapy and is considered safe.
In a review by Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, researchers said that it is difficult to say for sure since the data is limited.