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Why cupping is back in news with a bang

Cupping suddenly became a popular and a trending topic alongside the golds at the sports event.

So, what is all the hoopla on cupping at the Rio Olympics about really? Cupping or hijama as it is called in Arabic is derived from Greek medicine (Unani). It is an incredibly ancient form of treatment that has been practiced in the Middle East for the past few centuries.
This year it has been made famous yet again after the Olympian and high profile US Swimmer Michael Phelps was seen with angry polkas dotting his back. Later, a number of other gymnasts were also spotted with the same marks on their bodies.
Cupping suddenly became a popular and a trending topic alongside the golds at the sports event.
The marks on Phelps's back showed that he had used the alternative form of treatment to repair a frozen shoulder or loosen up his muscles just before he was due to compete. He has already clinched gold at the Olympics and it is now okay to say that cupping plays a small part in his success story.
While experts in the West debate on whether or not the treatment is a proven cure to soreness for athletes, a UAE-based hijama expert who has treated the likes of the country's cricketers and footballers for 14 years, swears by the benefits.
He explains that until 2008 most literature on cupping was in Arabic. By this time, there were job shortages around the globe and practitioners from the West started moving around hunting for work. They then started translating the Arabic literature into English and also set up info blogs, says Dr Syed Asaduddin Ahmed, an award-winning doctor who runs the Al Hijama Alternative Medicine Centre in Sharjah.
The alternative treatment method, that uses glass or plastic cups to suction blood from an affected area, was thus popularised by people who believed in it. Even today it is not a treatment that commercial establishments push for, he says.
The Arabs have known the advantages of cupping long before it became the West's new trend. Historically, the treatment was started by the Greek and adopted by the Chinese who use acupuncture points to perform dry cupping. which means they do not draw blood.
In the Arab world and India, the treatment is used to detox and clear the body of four types of illness-causing fluids. Cupping is claimed by its practitioners to treat an array of ailments, including muscular pain, joint pain, skin problems including eczema and acne, respiratory disorders, including the common cold, pneumonia and bronchitis, and has also been used as an alternative treatment for cancer.
Not more than 100 millilitres of toxic blood is slowly drawn through 150 points between the hip and toe in a single session through five to seven points. The practitioner chooses the points based on the patient's diagnosis.
If you look at Phelps spots, they are concentrated on the upper right side of his back which means he either has had treatment for a frozen shoulder or had treatment to loosen muscles that had become stiff due to over exercising, explains Dr Asaduddin who also has a number of celebrities asking for treatment.
For athletes, the treatment makes a lot of sense. Since many undergo intense training to increase muscle strength before a competition, cupping helps relax the muscles and reduces body soreness and pain, claims the doctor.
When athletes over exercise, they produce uric and lactic acids, which are detrimental to the muscles, says Dr Asaddudin. If this black bile is removed, muscle stiffness ends and strength is regained, he says.
A-listers such as Gwyneth Paltrow and Victoria Beckham have already been photographed with the circular rings. Just a few days ago, Kim Kardashian West, who will be coming to Dubai soon, took to Snapchat to tell her followers that she will be taking the treatment for discomfort in her neck.
Hope she chooses Dubai for it after all who can do it better than the experts.
Asma Ali Zain is Khaleej Times City Editor
asmaalizain@khaleejtimes.com