Celeb doctor who teaches Chinese medicine in China! (Feature with image)

MUMBAI - What’s common between Sachin Tendulkar, Manoj Kumar and China? Acupuncture and a man named P.B. Lohiya, who is not only therapist to sports and other stars but also teaches the ancient Chinese treatment in China.

Lohiya, the founder of the Indian Academy of Acupuncture Science in Aurangabad in Maharashtra, is a qualified allopathic doctor. But, dissatisfied about providing only symptomatic relief to patients without treating the root causes, quit his medical practice in 1983 to learn about natural natural remedies.

He now treats muscle and heart problems, asthma and psychological diseases with the help of tiny needles.

“I had read a lot about acupuncture and other nature-based remedies. I decided to start a fresh career in these fields,” Lohiya told IANS.

His quest for ancient medical sciences took him to China, Sri Lanka, Australia, Spain, South Korea and Switzerland. Armed with different degrees and a doctorate, he finally found success in acupuncture therapy and has now become an innovator after 26 years.

Since 1995, Lohia has been the only Indian visiting professor at the prestigious Beijing Meridian Research Centre, and vice president of the World Association of Chinese Medicine in Beijing.

“At a conference in Britain, I told top medicos how a careful analysis of allopathy reveals that it can treat only bacterial diseases without cure for viral diseases and most other chronic problems. It provides symptomatic treatment with possibility of major side-effects and no guarantee of permanent cures,” he explained.

Lohiya travels to China at least a couple of times a year and also teaches in the Open International University of Complementary Medicines in Colombo, Sri Lanka, where he is Professor Emeritus.

Lohiya treats all kinds of bone, muscle and nerve problems, heart problems, mental and psychological diseases, visual and hearing difficulties, paralysis of varying degrees, chronic asthma, hypertension and diabetes among many other so-called incurable disorders.

He also offers a wide range of cosmetic and beauty acupuncture for treating hair fall, sagging skin, eliminating wrinkles, obesity and pigmentation.

Among his patients are actor Manoj Kumar, who penned a poem in his honour, Kathak maestro Birju Maharaj, cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, tennis ace Sania Mirza apart from leading industrialists and politicians.

But he has one condition - the patients must go to his clinics in Dadar (Mumbai), Aurangabad, Pune, Kolhapur, Hyderabad or Surat.

The 10-bedded Mumbai clinic is full for 18 hours daily. It is managed by his student Neeta Tomar.

“Lohiya sir taught me the techniques but owing to his national and international commitments, he can spare only four-five days here a month. In his absence, I handle the patients, but seek advice on complicated problems,” Tomar said while taking this IANS correspondent around the modest facility.

Lohiya’s innovations in acupuncture surprised even his Chinese masters who had taught him their ancient science.

“I developed the ‘Lohiya Technique’ to inject catguts at relevant points in a patient’s body. It gives continuous acupuncture for three weeks, saving lot of time and money for the patient,” he explained.

“Plus, we use laser beams to stimulate acupuncture points, or externally stick tiny needles that can be removed easily after five-six days,” Tomar added.

He has applied modern methods to practice the ancient sciences - the pride of place being a computerised AcuGraph maker.

“AcuGraph reveals the functioning of a patient’s body organs, their negative-positive energy levels, the disturbances in five natural elements - wood, fire, earth, metal and water. A tongue and pulse diagnosis with the AcuGraph, enables me to attack and treat the root causes,” he said.

Lohiya has so far treated over 200,000 patients across the country and trained over 6,000 medicos in India and abroad.

(Quaid Najmi can be contacted at q.najmi@ians.in)