ELI5 Cupping Therapy - can bruises really heal you?

About this episode

This episode explores the phenomenon of cupping therapy, its historical roots, and its modern-day popularity among athletes.

Why do we see many professional athletes look like they were attacked by a giant octopus? How did a treatment from ancient history become the biggest trend in modern locker rooms? If a bruise is "stuck" blood, how can it actually help your blood flow? Can we really suck "bad energy" or "toxins" out of our muscles with a glass jar? Why do some doctors call this "quackery" while others say it's a powerful mental tool? ... we explain like I'm five Thank you to the r/explainlikeimfive community and in particular the following users whose questions and comments formed the basis of this discussion: breeze_in_the_trees, tateshinski, phage0070, doingthehumptydance, mohamed and zhang To the ELI5 community that has supported us so far, thanks for all your feedback and comments. Join us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/eli5ThePodcast/ or send us an e-mail: ELI5ThePodcast@gmail.com

People in this episode

Host: ELI5 Explain Like I'm Five Podcast

Topics covered

• Cupping Therapy
• Athletic Treatments
• Health Trends
• Alternative Medicine
• Blood Flow
• Quackery

Keywords

• cupping therapy
• bruises
• blood flow
• alternative medicine
• athletes
• quackery
• health trends

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