This therapy
has been used by healers for more than 5000 years and is referred
to in other cultures as Catación, Koppning, Βεντούζα, Coppettazione, Bentousa, Баночный, Vendouses, Çukurluğu, Glāstīdams, Köpölyözés, Kuppareita, Gac Hoi, Meybuom, حجامت, Bahnkes, Kyukaku,
Txhuav, Ventosaterapia, Вендузи, Michceme, SchrÖpftherapie, Seljale, Medi-Kuppings, Kuppaus, Buhwang, Kupa Cekme, Jiaofa, Sang Pori, Kavaa, Baňkování,
Ventuze, Singhi and Vacuume Terapi.
Ongoing clinical studies, applications and cutting edge equipment enhancements in Cupping have led to developments in numerous techniques that are unsurpassed in addressing condition specific treatments and resolution. |
The
positive effects of manual therapies are greatly increased with Cupping.
~ Deep Tissue Massage ~ Myofascial Release ~
Lymphatic Drainage ~
Orthopedic Conditions ~
Neuromuscular
Dysfunctions ~
Sports Massage and Injuries ~
Stubborn Conditions ~
Fibromyalgia ~
Trigger Point Therapy ~
Traumatic Injuries ~
Chronic Conditions ~
Abdominals ~
Reflexology
~
Physical Therapy ~
Detoxification
~
Cellulite, Scars, Stretch Marks and Varicosities ~
Facial Treatments ~
TMJD's ~
Sports Medicine ~
~ General Relaxation and Wellness ~
The
historical, clinical and subjective
efficacy of this modality is most impressive.
 |
The ICTA
provides comprehensive training in Cupping Therapies for all Healthcare Providers.
ICTA Members have access to marketing materials, studies, training, specialized treatments and International Representation. |
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Body Treatments using
the Baguanfa Cups
|
| A Cup of History
The specific origin of Cupping Therapy remains in obscurity - the consensus
is that the action of suction has been part of therapeutic efforts throughout
human history, migrating with human tribes along migratory routes. These ancient cultures
used hollowed out animal horns, bones, bamboo, nuts, seashells and gourds
to purge bites, pustules, infections and skin lesions from the body, and
many are still in use today. Ancient healers also used Cupping devices
to draw evil spirits out of the body and to balance the humors. Earthenware
and metal were fashioned into Cupping vessels before the development of glass.
| Cupping therapy was used in Egypt dating back some 3,500 years, where
its use is represented in hieroglyphic writing. The earliest recorded
use of Cupping is from the famous Taoist alchemist and herbalist, Ge Hong
(281–341 A.D.). In ancient Greece, Hippocrates recommended the use
of cups for a variety of ailments, while in the early 1900’s eminent
British physician, Sir Arthur Keith, wrote how he witnessed Cupping performed
with excellent success. |
 |
| Suction Cup Therapies remained a constant in professional
medical treatment throughout Europe. It was practiced by such famous physicians
as Galen (131-200AD), Paracelsus(1493-1541), Ambroise Pare (1509-90) and
surgeon Charles Kennedy (1826). |
In China, extensive research has been carried out on Cupping, and the
practice is a mainstay of government-sponsored hospitals of Traditional
Chinese medicine (TCM). The fundamental therapeutic value of Cupping has
been documented through several thousand years of clinical and subjective
experience and has advanced its application to many areas.
Women healers in communities throughout the world practiced the use of
suction to purge, stimulate and heal, passing down their knowledge to apprentices and as
family tradition. Cross cultural studies show that Women represented a
major source and influence as healers in many cultures, with people traveling for days to reach a well known healer. Reliable sources
hold that Cupping throughout Europe, Africa, and Asia was usually performed
by the Women in the communities. By the thirteenth century, however, universities
including Biomedical studies in their curriculums excluded Women. Despite
the fact that non-official "folk" medicine has been poorly represented, Women
would have continued to play a major role in health care delivery. Had
they been allowed to participate in the higher education arena, their
contributions in natural healing modalities, and especially the safe and
effective use and continuity of Cupping practices, would have been more
substantial than by their male counterparts.
By the mid 1800's, the Western Medical Establishment had
imposed upon society, their scientific model of medicine, defining medicine by making
the body transparent, focusing on and treating the inside, in preference
to the outside. Because Cupping (along with many other Holistic Healing
Arts) was a surface treatment, it was inconsistent with this new Biomedical paradigm,
which moved away from hands on personal contact and manipulative therapies
of generations past.
Although the use of Cupping has remained popular
throughout many cultures worldwide, the 20th century witnessed its
widespread decrease in many Anglo-Saxon societies. Even the North American
Indians used Buffalo Horn, seashells, gourds and bones for Cupping, but as
their culture was decimated and its people herded into reservations,
their traditions of health maintenance and healing were also lost.
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