MondayInterview@ITREALMS:
Dr. Kaka Kyari Abba is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Dagira Alternative Medical Care Limited, an alternative
medicine practitioner reputed in North-Eastern Nigeria for the potency of
his treatment and prescriptions. He speaks on healing
kidney and other health situations with acupuncture, cupping and others
alternative procedure.Excerpts.
Kindly give a peep into your background?
Dr
Abba: I was born on 11th
January 1975, graduated in BSc Botany from University of Maiduguri in 2002, did
my final year project in ‘Medicinal Plants’ which paved the way for the
development of interest in natural medicine. I made various research especially
on locally available plants and started offering a part time herbal treatments
in the year 2001 privately at home. In 2015 July I secured an office and
started a full time herbal practice.
In other to diversify
the business, I developed interest in acupuncture and got admission at the
prestigious Open International University of Alternative medicine, Colombo, Sri
Lanka, where I received training in Acupuncture between 2017 and 2018. I also
received six months certification training in Unani Medicine with Hakeem Ajmal
Khan Memorial Foundation in Delhi India. During the past 3 years of my
clinical practice of Acupuncture, Unani and herbal medicine, I attended various
workshops on acupuncture and cupping therapies.
I achieved
excellent curative results in the treatment of conditions like spondylosis,
backaches, arthritis, asthma, skin diseases, gynae disorders, eye diseases
including optic nerve atrophy, glaucoma and retinal degeneration, cigarette
de-addiction, migraine, irritable bowel syndrome, facial paralysis, stroke,
diabetes, etc. I attended to and treated over 4000 patients in the past
years.
I am basically a
socio-medical worker. On the basis of whatever knowledge and experiences I have
gathered till date - as a social worker and acupuncture physician, trainer and
researcher – I want to share them with the broad masses of people and sow among
them the ideals of selfless service to the people and natural way of living.
With this aim in mind I have been working for establishing the approach of
integrative medicine putting emphasis on the use of traditional Chinese
medicine, unani and Herbal medicines for the benefit of the common people of
Nigeria, specially the deprived & under privileged.
I am the founder and
Physician in-Chief, Dagira Alternative Medical Care Ltd, I also serve as
National vice president research and development of Nigerian Council of
Physicians of Natural Medicine NCPNM.
What exactly is Acupuncture?
Dr Abba: Acupuncture
is a form of traditional Chinese medicine that involved pricking certain points
of the body with fine needles to enhance the body’s self healing capacity.
Basically advance
practioners define acupuncture as ‘a resonance modulation treatment system
that transforms life forces (qi) moving along body surfaces (channels), by
touch, prick, warming, cupping, pinching & photo stimulation.
Acupuncture is a
philosophy, practising acupuncture is an art, it is a unique means of treating
diseases in Chinese medicine. Its core philosophy is "inside disease and
external treatment." That is to say, through the conduction of meridians,
acupoints, and the application of certain methods of operation to treat
systemic diseases.
How
does Acupuncture works?
Dr
Abba: Acupuncture is truly
a treatment modality where modern science meets ancient art! Acupuncture works
by stimulation of specific points (acu-points) on the body, which have the
ability to alter various biochemical and physiological conditions in order to
achieve a healing effect.
Ancient Chinese
medical philosophy believes that disease is a result of an imbalance of energy
(qi) in the body. Acupuncture is believed to balance this energy, and thereby
assist the body in healing disease. In Western terms, acupuncture can assist
the body’s efforts to heal itself by causing certain physiological changes.
Acupuncture works by
stimulating nerve endings that are below an acupuncture point. This results in
the release of messengers such as endogenous opioids, endorphins and serotonin
that cause analgesia (pain relief) via the nervous system. In addition to the
release of cortisol - the body’s natural steroid hormone that aids in reducing
inflammation.
What kind of conditions
can be treated with Acupuncture?
Dr
Abba: Every disease can be
either prevented or treated through acupuncture. It is an affordable and
accessible medical practice. It also has no side effects. The use of this
method is increasing rapidly in the world over.
It has been
demonstrated by the World Health Organization that acupuncture can treat more
than 200 symptoms and diseases like: low back pain, headaches, nausea/vomiting,
depression/anxiety, tendinitis, arthritis, headaches, chronic pain, chronic
fatigue syndrome, respiratory disorders, skin problems, dysmmenorhea and
digestive disorders.
Acupuncture has proven
to be successful in reducing stress, muscle tension, chronic pain (including
headaches) and helping normalize menstrual irregularities. If the symptom is a
result of an energy blockage within the body, acupuncture can encourage the
body's natural healing response. Acupuncturist can treat more complicated
issues like digestive disorders, infertility, menstrual irregularities, skin
problems as well as pain and stress relief.
Acupuncture is a
complete medical system that has been developed and refined over three thousand
years. It treats the body and mind as one, not just symptoms. It involves
inserting very fine needles into acu-points in the body to bring about
physiological changes. Acupuncture triggers different healing mechanisms in the
body to treat a wide variety of pain conditions and internal diseases.
• It stimulates the
release of powerful pain-killing and anti-inflammatory substances from the
brain.
• It changes the way
your brain responds to pain, and can modify internal organ function to treat
many complex diseases.
• It has many local
effects; including the relaxing of tight muscles and increase of blood and
oxygen circulation.
What can you say about the level of awareness among local communities on effectiveness of
Acupuncture?
Dr
Abba: Their response is
quite impressive, Acupuncture is waxing across Borno and Yobe states in
geometrical progression on daily basis.This is partly connected to my famous
weekly radio awareness program in our local language on Wednesdays and Hausa
language on Thursdays where I offer lectures on the therapeutic values of
certain fruits and vegetables and sometimes emphasis on acupuncture (medication
without drugs) and partly to the thousands of patients who benefited from
dividend of acupuncture treatment within the last 3yrs.
How
many needles do you use, how long do you leave the needles in and how much do
you manipulate the needles?
Dr
Abba: It often produces
remarkable results with just a few needles and usually brings about immediate
improvements. We usually use 4-20 needles. The retention of needles is 30-45
minutes. We manipulate every 10 minutes for 2-3 minutes. We apply moxa and also
stimulate the needles with micro electric stimulators. This process is repeated
for few sessions.
How
many treatments are usually necessary and what about the frequency?
Dr Abba: Most patients (90 per cent) whom we treated showed improvements
within initial 3 sessions, and many of them showed improvement at the first
session. At the beginning of treatments, we treat patients 2-3 times per week,
then reduce to once a week after they have major improvements.
Conditions
like kidney disorder is on the rise. What is your experience with this
condition and how well can you treat it?
Dr Abba: We have
treated many kidney patients and had good results. Acupuncture lowers
creatinine level more and more kidney disease patients tend to choose
Acupuncture (Traditional Chinese Medicine) to lower creatinine levels.
Acupuncture and Hijama (wet cupping) can eliminate thrombus, promote blood
circulation and increase the blood flow to kidneys, so it can help improve the hypoxic-ischemic
state in kidneys greatly, thus relieving renal damage, providing essential
nutrients and repairing damaged kidney inherent cells.
Kidney disease patients
usually experience fatigue and poor appetite because of the accumulation of
wastes and toxins in the blood. However, acupuncture can help relieve these
symptoms. Acupuncture can lower creatinine level to a certain degree. When we
use acupuncture points to treat kidney disease, the acupuncture points used
mainly include Dazhui (GV 14), lienal Yu,Zhangmen (Liv 13), shenshu, Qihai
(CV6), Zusanli, Taixi (K 3), etc.
What
is cupping and how does it work?
Dr Abba: Cupping therapy is taught both in acupuncture and Unani
medicine, in Traditional Chinese practice cupping is of three types.
Cupping (hijama) is of
three types:
1- Dry cupping - This
is the process of using a vacuum on different areas of the body in order to
gather the blood in that area without incisions (small, light scratches using a
sterile surgical blade or).
2- Dry massage cupping
– This is similar to dry cupping but olive oil is applied to the skin (before
applying the cups) in order to allow easy movement of the cups.
3- Wet cupping
(hijama) - This is the process of using a vacuum at different points on the
body but with small incisions in order to remove 'harmful' blood which lies
just beneath the surface of the skin. (It is recommended that wet cupping
(hijama) is only administered by a cupping therapist).
Only the third type of
cupping is practiced in Unani and is considerd as SUNNA. The Messenger r said,
"Indeed the best of remedies you have is cupping (hijama)…" [Saheeh al-Bukhaaree
(5371)]
Today, cupping is a
form of alternative therapy by which cups are placed on the skin to create
suction. There is a saying in Chinese medicine: ‘Where there is a flow there is
health, and where there is stagnation there is disease.’ The feeling of
wellbeing, the looseness of the body and higher levels of energy makes it a
favoured healing method to treat and prevent diseases.
In some cases is a
very useful tool for internal conditions such as headaches, cough, asthma,
stroke, facial paralysis, arthritis, stress, fibromyalgia and infertility.
What
are the benefits of cupping?
Dr
Abba: Many benefits as
follows :
• Draining excess
fluid
• Releasing rigid soft
tissues
• Delivering blood
flow to
blocked muscles
and skin
• Draining toxins and
pathogens
• Lifting connective
tissue
• Loosening adhesions
• Relief from short
and long
term
inflammation
• Promotion of
lymphatic circulation
• Strengthening of the
immune system
• Muscle and
connective
tissues are
stretched
• Benefit Arthritis,
joint pain,
muscle pain and
stiffness
• Releases stress
• Deep tissue relief
• Breaking up and
expelling congestion
• Stimulation of qi
and blood
movement
systemically and
locally.
• Cleans the blood and
lymph
• Helping to balance
pH levels
• Nervous system
sedation
• Directs blood to the
skin
Where is cupping done?
Dr Abba: Usually
applied on the cervical area (Neck), shoulders, middle and lower back. Various
sized cups can also be placed on the acupuncture points such as the chest, the
abdomen (very good for digestive problems), bowel movement, and buttocks
(Sciatic pain), inner and outer thighs (cellulite or varicose veins).
The places selected
are treated with additional acupuncture according to the severity of the
problem. A sliding cupping massage is applied all over the back and abdomen
using herbal oils and massage manipulation.
But you are in
Maiduguri. How will people outside the area reach you?
Dr Abba: We offer
treatment all over Nigeria.We are regularly in Abuja. What we offer is
validated the WHO and other international bodies.
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