American swimmer Michael Phelps has won more Olympic medals than anyone in history. On Sunday night, he added another gold medal as a member of the USA 4x100-meter freestyle relay team.
美国游泳选手迈克尔·菲尔普斯（Michael Phelps）已经赢得了有史以来最多的奥运奖牌。上周日晚上，他作为美国4x100米自由泳接力队的一员又获得一枚金牌。
But the red circular marks on Phelps' upper arms and shoulders received most of the attention. Television viewers wondered what caused the marks on his body. Athletes in other sports had similar marks.
但是菲尔普斯上臂和肩膀上的红色圆形印记最引人注目。电视观众想要知道是什么导致了他身上的印记。其它项目的运动员身上也有类似印记。
It turns out they are bruises left behind from a treatment called cupping. Cupping is supposed to help athletes who have sore muscles feel better.
原来这是拔罐后留下的紫血斑。拔罐应该有助于肌肉酸痛的运动员感觉更好些。
A study published earlier this year in the Journal of Bodywork and Therapies calls cupping "an ancient technique used in treating pain and various disorders."
今年早些时候发表在《纤体与治疗》杂志上的一项研究称拔罐“是一种治疗疼痛和各种疾病的古老技术”。
Forms of cupping may have started over 5,000 years ago. It is practiced frequently in Asian countries but it is less common in the U.S and western countries. Sometimes the cups are applied with the help of heat. They are also applied using a suction device.
拔罐可能始于5千年前。它在亚洲国家经常被用到，但是在美国和西方国家不太常见。拔罐时这些罐子有时候利用热量的帮助，有时候也利用抽吸装置。
The glass or plastic cups are placed on the skin, and the suction device removes air. This creates a tight seal. The cups are kept in place for only a few minutes.
这些玻璃或塑料罐子被放置在皮肤上，然后利用抽吸装置排出空气，这会造成密封。这些罐子会保持就位数分钟时间。
The journal's report, by Evgeni Rozenfeld and Leonid Kalichman, says it is not clear why some people benefit from cupping therapy. The theory is that pressure applied to the skin and nearby muscles from the cup stimulates blood flow. The blood flow may reduce pain in the area. The report says more studies are needed to learn about the effectiveness of the therapy.
Evgeni Rozenfeld和Leonid Kalichman发表在该杂志的这份研究报告称，目前尚不清楚为什么有些人能从拔罐治疗中受益。该理论是罐子施加给皮肤和附近肌肉的压力会促进血液流动。而血液流动可以减轻该部位的疼痛。该报告称，想要了解这种疗法的有效性还需要进行更多研究。
Athletes and celebrities have posted photos to social media sites of themselves using cups.
运动员和各界名人都在社交媒体上发布了他们拔罐的照片。
Those watching Alexander Naddour of the USA Gymnastics team compete over the weekend also saw evidence of cupping.
观看美国体操队亚历山大·那杜亚（Alexander Naddour）周末比赛的观众也看到了拔罐留下的证据。
Naddour told USA Today that the cups were a "secret," that kept him healthy during training.
那杜亚对《今日美国》表示，这些罐子是一个秘密，它们让他在训练中保持健康。
Dr. Adam Perlman, of Duke Integrative Medicine in North Carolina, told CBS News he was glad to see Olympic athletes trying new forms of therapy.
北卡罗莱纳州杜克整合医学的亚当·珀尔曼（Adam Perlman）博士对CBS新闻表示，他很高兴看到奥运健儿尝试新的疗法。
"It really speaks to this level of integration we're seeing with many things that are considered complementary medicine," he said.
他说，“这很清楚地说明在这个级别的整合上，我们可以看到很多被认为是辅助性医疗的东西。”
I'm Dan Friedell.
我是丹·费里德尔。(51VOA.COM对本文翻译保留全部权利，未经授权请勿转载，违者必究！)