Cupping
Cupping – ETHOS HEALTH CARE
Cupping is considered to be a form of acupuncture. It is one of the oldest methods of traditional Chinese medicine. There are many styles and techniques of cupping, all of which use suction in cups to draw energy, blood, and fluids to the surface to promote circulation.
In a typical cupping session, glass cups are warmed using a cotton ball or other flammable substance, which is soaked in alcohol, let, then placed inside the cup. Burning a substance inside the cup removes all the oxygen, which creates a vacuum.
As the substance burns, the cup is turned upside-down so that the practitioner can place the cup over a specific area. The vacuum created by the lack of oxygen anchors the cup to the skin and pulls it upward on the inside of the glass as the air inside the jar cools. Drawing up the skin is believed to open up the skin’s pores, which helps to stimulate the flow of blood, balances and realigns the flow of qi, breaks up obstructions, and creates an avenue for toxins to be drawn out of the body.
Some practitioners will also apply small amounts of medicated oils or herbal oils to the skin just before the cupping procedure, which lets them move the cups up and down particular acupoints or meridians after they have been applied.
Cupping is used to treat –
- Coughs
- Asthma
- Common cold
- Muscle aches and pain
- Stress
- Tension
- High blood pressure
Cupping should not be performed with –
- Patients having inflamed skin
- Cases of high fever or convulsions
- Patients who bleed easily
- pregnant, have a circulation disorder, hemophilia, lupus, or diabetes
