Skier Vonn's Cheese Treatment

How bad was the “deep muscle bruise” Olympic skier Lindsey Vonn sustained last week in her right shin? “The muscle is bleeding,” she said, “and it’s really deep inside the muscle.” So she’s been treating her injury in all the normal ways: painkillers, stretching, and cheese. Yes, Vonn has been wrapping her leg in the Austrian cheese called topfen—aka quark in German—to reduce swelling. Because topfen is a fresh cheese, there is minor evidence that the acidity of the compress Vonn is using would work to prevent bacteria from infecting her leg—though, according to Slate, Vonn’s treatment is being met with “skepticism from both medical professionals and dairy scientists.”