Calgary wellness centres see big jump in cupping appointments thanks to Olympics

Calgarians are lining up at spas and wellness centres to try out an ancient practice that's getting new exposure thanks to the Olympics in Rio.

The pain-relief therapy has been drawingattention withathletes, including American gold medal swimmer Michael Phelpssporting the perfectly round bruises that the treatment leaves behind.

"There's been a lot of hype and our bookings for cupping have increased by 75 per cent in just the last three days," says Karen Bandy, who owns the Body Therapy Wellness Centre in the community ofEvanston.

"The swimmers in the Olympics and seeing those marks on their bodies is raising public awareness."

People with chronic injuries are among those asking about the procedure, along with athletes looking to increase their mobility.

Glass bulbsare heated with a flammable substance, like alcohol, orburning paper,then as the fire subsides, the cup is applied to a patient's skin, creating a vacuum over the skinas the cups cool.

The practice is believed to promote blood circulation to the cupped area. Practitioners believe cupping allows spaces in the muscle and surrounding area to open for fluids, like blood, so it can move freely.

"What cupping does is like a reverse deep tissue massage, taking stagnant energy and stagnant blood from deeper levels and releasing it to the surface so it can be dissipated," says Claire Edwards, who is a doctor of traditional Chinese medicine at Body Therapy.

Other spas and wellness centres around Calgary say they'reseeingthe same buzz around cupping over the last few days.

"It's all over the news and business has definitely grown," says Gaurav Gupta, with Leela Eco Spa in Bridgeland.

"We pulled the numbers and we've done almost five times what we did last year. Not everyone's up for acupuncture but cupping is less invasive."

In recent years, Hollywood celebrities such as Gwyneth Paltrow, Victoria Beckham and Jennifer Aniston have used in the practice for health and wellness purposes.

Cupping has not been fully accepted by mainstream medicine though and some scientists are sceptical about the efficacy of the procedure.

In 2014 the Journal of Traditional Chinese Medical Sciencesreviewed published studies on cupping. Researchers concluded the published literature suggests a possible short-term positive effect in reducing pain intensity, compared to heat therapy or conventional drugs.