What Is Cupping and Should You Try It?

Cupping therapy isn’t new in many parts of the world., but the ancient Chinese practice only made it into the American mainstream a few years ago, thanks to Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps. The swimmer generated buzz when he sported cupping’s signature circular bruises during the 2016 summer games.

Other celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow have also embraced cupping in recent years. Kim Kardashian has touted facial cupping and actress and talk-show host Busy Philipps showed off her own cupping marks on Instagram, where the hashtag “#cupping” has been used nearly 500,000 times.

What exactly is cupping, and should you give it a try? We spoke to a couple of experts to find out.

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What Is Cupping?

Cupping is an alternative medicine therapy, similar to acupuncture and massage. The practice involves using cups, usually made of glass or plastic, placed on the skin to create suction, according to the National Institutes of Health’s National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. The goal is to create a vacuum and negative pressure to increase blood flow to an area.

Unlike massage or chiropractic techniques, which involve soft tissue mobilization where muscles are pressed on, cupping therapy is “decompressive rather than compressive,” said Allison Heffron, DC, a chiropractor and acupuncturist at Physio Logic in Brooklyn, New York.

“Cupping is opening up that tissue,” she said. “It’s pulling it apart in a way—not in a damaging way. It’s just the complete opposite direction. So, it’s opening up more channels of blood flow and nerve flow to allow a pretty fast healing response.” 

There are several different types of cupping. In slide cupping, a method Heffron prefers, cups are moved back and forth across an area, while they stay in one spot in stationary cupping, which more likely causes the “circular hickey marks,” she said.

Traditional cupping involves using a flame to remove oxygen from the cup before it’s applied to the skin to create suction, Heffron said. Suction-only cupping is referred to as dry cupping. Another technique, wet cupping, involves lightly cutting the skin before the cup is applied to create controlled bleeding, like “a makeshift leech,” as Heffron describes it.

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What Is Cupping Used to Treat?

Cupping is commonly used to treat muscle pain and mobility issues. Andrew Shubov, MD, physician and director of inpatient at the UCLA Center for East-West Medicine, said this likely attracts Phelps and other athletes to the therapy.

The upper and lower back, neck and shoulders are areas commonly cupped, but it is safe for most muscle groups, Shubov said. While there has been some “reasonable research” on cupping’s effectiveness for neck and back pain, he said most research has not been robust enough.

However, Shubov said any technique that increases blood flow to an area can improve muscle function.

“It does seem to make sense if you think about just the physiology of how muscle spasms will persist until the blood is refreshed,” he said. “And cupping is one tool that can be used to refresh the blood within an area of muscle spasm.”

At the UCLA Center for East-West Medicine, cupping is solely used for muscle issues, but other practitioners use cupping to treat a variety of ailments. Along with musculoskeletal issues, Heffron uses cupping for respiratory problems, migraines, constipation and facial cupping to help with facial paralysis.  

Before a cupping session, Heffron evaluates individuals by asking a series of questions about their pain, sleep patterns, digestive issues and other topics. She also checks the pulse and examines the tongue to get a sense of what’s going on internally, a key part of the eastern tradition of cupping.

“The tongue is a really good visualizer of organ function and fluids throughout the body,” she said. “Based on that evaluation and feeling the pulse, I’ll know I can safely do cupping on this person.”

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Is Cupping Painful?

Cupping often leaves circular marks on the body where the cups were applied. The bruising usually isn’t painful, but can last for up to a week, Heffron said. The color of the marks can be telling, as well, helping clinicians understand what’s causing pain or another issue in the area, she said.

For example, purple marks signal that blood is stagnant; bright red marks indicate “heat,” a type of inflammation, she said. Brown marks show that things are healing.   

Besides the bruising, cupping can cause some side effects, like skin discoloration, scars, burns and infections. It can make conditions, like eczema or psoriasis, worse, according to the NIH, so be sure to check with your medical doctor before booking a cupping session to make sure you won’t do more harm than good.

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Should You Try Cupping?

Cupping, especially dry cupping, is generally safe, said Shubov, who compares the therapy to getting a massage.

People with bleeding disorders or who take blood-thinning medication should likely not have cupping done, Shubov said.

Heffron adds that anyone who’s “immunosuppressed” also shouldn’t be cupped, as it can create a vulnerability in the skin.

Heffron said there isn’t necessarily a best candidate for cupping, and all cases are individual. She said it’s a common misconception that cupping helps everyone and everything—an idea perpetuated as cupping has become trendy with celebrities and on social media. She urges people to educate themselves about cupping’s true nature.

“It’s not scary,” Heffron said. “A lot of people think it’s really freaky because they see the bruising, but it’s not any more painful than an intense massage. It’s a useful form of therapy.”

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Sources

• Allison Heffron, DC
• Andrew Shubov, MD