Kinesiotape is a type of tape with a proprietary blend of cotton and nylon. It’s designed to mimic the skin’s elasticity so you can use your full range of motion. The tape’s medical-grade adhesive is also water-resistant and strong enough to stay on for three to five days, even while you work out or take showers.
When the tape is applied to your body, it recoils slightly, gently lifting your skin. It is believed that this helps to create a microscopic space between your skin and the tissues underneath it.
What are the effects:
– Creates space in joints: One small study with 32 participants showed that when kinesiology tape was applied over the knee, it increased the space in the knee joint. Trusted Source A similar study showed kinesiology tape also increased the space in the shoulder joint. Trusted Source Even though the increase in space is slight, it helps reduce the chance of joint irritation.
– Change signals on pain pathways
“All of your tissues — skin, connective tissue, fascia, muscles — contain sensory receptors that feel pain, temperature, and touch. Those receptors all contribute to proprioception—your brain’s sense of where your body is and what it’s doing. Kinesiology taping creates a lift that unloads the underlying tissues. Decompressing those tissues can change the signals going to the brain. When the brain receives a different signal, it’s going to respond differently,”
– Improve circulation of blood and fluids
If you’ve been injured, kinesiology tape might help improve circulation and reduce swelling in the area where you’re hurt. When kinesiology tape is applied, it creates extra subcutaneous space, which changes the pressure gradient in the area underneath your skin. That change in pressure enhances the flow of lymphatic fluid.
What is kinesiology tape used for?
– Treating injuries: Physical therapists sometimes use kinesiology taping as one part of an overall treatment plan for people who’ve been injured
– Supporting weak zones: Kinesiology tape is also used to add extra support to muscles or joints that need it. If you have patellofemoral stress syndrome, IT band friction syndrome, or Achilles tendonitis, kinesiology taping might help you.
Unlike white medical or athletic tape, kinesiology tape lets you move normally. In fact, some studies show that it can enhance movement and endurance. Studies on athletes have shown that when kinesiology tape is used on fatigued muscles, performance improves.
– Re-educating muscles: Kinesiology tape can help re-train muscles that have lost function or that have gotten used to an unhealthy way of working.
For example, kinesiology taping can be used to correct posture in your head and neck.
– Enhancing performance: Some athletes use kinesiology taping to help them achieve peak performance and protect against injury when they’re competing in special events.
– Managing scars: Although you should never use kinesiology tape on an open wound, there is some scientific evidence to suggest that kinesiology tape can improve the long-term appearance of scars after surgery or injury.
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