What is Cupping?

Cupping therapy is an ancient form of alternative medicine in which a therapist puts special cups on your skin for a few minutes to create suction. People get it for many purposes, including to help with pain, inflammation, blood flow, relaxation and well-being, and as a type of deep-tissue massage.

Fire cupping involves soaking a cotton ball in almost pure alcohol. The cotton is clamped by a pair of forceps and lit via match or lighter, and, in one motion, placed into the cup and quickly removed, while the cup is placed on the skin. Fire heats the inside of the cup and a small amount of suction is created by the air cooling down again and contracting. Massage oil may be applied to create a better seal as well as allow the cups to glide over muscle groups in an act called "moving cupping". Dark circles may appear where the cups were placed because of rupture of the capillaries just under the skin. There are documented cases of burns caused by fire cupping.

Wet cupping is also known as Hijama (Arabic: حجامة‎ lit. "sucking") or medicinal bleeding, where blood is drawn by local suction from a small skin incision. The first reported usages are found in the Islamic hadith, sayings attributed to or describing the actions of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Hadith from Muhammad al-Bukhari, Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj Nishapuri and Ahmad ibn Hanbal support its recommendation and use by Muhammad. As a result, wet cupping has remained a popular remedy practiced in many parts of the Muslim world.

A common application for silicone cupping is the treatment of cellulite. Cellulite, also known as ‘orange-peel syndrome”, is often caused by poor moisture drainage in the skin area around belly, buttocks and thighs. As a result, nods and dimples may develop under the skin in this area. Lymphatic fluid may eventually turn into fat cells, causing a lumpy skin to become visible. Regular cupping will improve the skin condition and can reduce cellulite.