Cupping for athletes: rubbish trials, rubbish review, rubbish journal

The authors of this systematic review aimed to summarize the evidence of clinical trials on cupping for athletes. Randomized controlled trials on cupping therapy with no restriction regarding the technique, or co-interventions, were included, if they measured the effects of cupping compared with any other intervention on health and performance outcomes in professionals, semi-professionals, and […]

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The future of cupping: it’s bright, profitable and vacuous | Edzard Ernst

As predicted, thanks to its high visibility in Rio, to the journalists, editors, photographers, numerous ‘experts’ crawling out of the woodwork, and last but not least the gullible public, cupping has fast become fashionable, ‘cool’ and ‘en vogue’.

Yes! Literally ‘en vogue’! 

It has conquered the pages of ‘VOGUE’ (and any quackery that achieves this feast must have a bright […]
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There is a sucker born every minute – more thoughts on the Olympic cupping craze | Edzard Ernst

“THERE IS A SUCKER BORN EVERY MINUTE” – this quote is commonly attributed to P.T. Barnum. If he really coined the sentence, he certainly did not think of the little cups sucking in the skin of patients undergoing cupping therapy. Yet, the recent media coverage of cupping made me think of this quote. The suckers here are not […]

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Cupping: bruises for the gullible, and other myths in sport

This is my version of a post which I was asked to write for Indy Voices. It’s been published, though so many changes were made by the editor that I’m posting the original here.

So much has been said about cupping during the last week that it’s hard to say much that’s original. Yesterday I did [...]


Read the rest at: DC's Improbable Science: Truth, falsehood and evidence: investigations of dubious and dishonest science

The current cupping craze | Edzard Ernst

No, I don’t want to put you off your breakfast… but you probably have seen so many pictures of attractive athletes with cupping marks and read articles about the virtues of this ancient therapy, that I feel I have to put this into perspective: I am sure you agree that this is slightly less attractive. […]

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Wet cupping: too good to be true? | Edzard Ernst

Wet cupping is a therapy traditionally used in several cultures. It involves superficial injuries to the skin and subsequently the application of a vacuum cup over the injured site. This procedure would draw a small amount of blood into the cup, and this visible effect was taken as a sign that the humors or life forces or whatever are […]

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