Daily Health News Blog

Browse through a sporting-goods store or website, or simply look around a gym or health club, and you’re likely to see the thick, stretchy shorts and tights (and sometimes tops) known as compression garments. A cross between skintight bike shorts and a girdle, they are super snug—typically 15 percent smaller than your regular size—and made of bands that hug muscles, thighs, buttocks, and calves. The shorts come in various lengths, but are usually mid-thigh and worn under regular shorts. Marketers claim that the garments help athletes and exercisers improve their game or workouts, speed recovery, and prevent delayed-onset muscle soreness. They’re also supposed to reduce the risk of certain injuries by warming, supporting, and increasing blood flow to muscles, all of which also contribute to enhanced athletic performance. Putting them to the test In recent years these claims have been tested, but only in small studies involving young athletes. For instance, an Australian stud...