Eden, one of Zabeel’s four lifestyle and beauty wings, offers customised plans to visitors and members suffering from acute or chronic pain, commonly from back-related issues.
The centre – headed by Dr Sanjeevani Dahiwadkar – provides physiotherapy with a team of experts using a mix of conventional medical care and complementary therapies.
I was initially booked in for a quick tour of the facilities and a chat with Dr Dahiwadkar. What came to pass, however, was quite different. Before I knew it, I was standing in the physio room, my posture being photographed from all angles.
The doctor showed me the instant analysis on her iPad: the green lines charted the ideal curvature of the spine and alignment of the hips and head, while the red lines illustrated where they deviated.
The results were illuminating and, thankfully, I seemed in pretty good shape. She did reveal, however, that I unwittingly tilt my head to one side more than the other, and as with most people, my posture could be better.
Following the analysis, I was ushered to the treatment table where I was asked to lie face down for a physical examination. Dr Dahiwadkar worked in tandem with her assistant physiotherapist, moving down each vertebrae of the spine and identifying the areas of pain, spasm or muscle tension. With my shoulders a tad knotty, a therapeutic massage was called for and it proved more than a little uncomfortable.
The doctor decided to insert an acupuncture needle into each shoulder blade to ease my discomfort. The relief was instant and the muscle groups seemed to physically pop and soften in seconds. The deep-tissue manipulation continued for a further 30 minutes and I felt transformed when it was over.
Before I left, the doctor recommended simple steps for me to take at home and work – sitting on a Swiss Ball whenever possible. She also extolled the virtues of back-strengthening exercises, yoga and regular cardio activity.
Another key takeaway, and one that I’ve tried to keep in mind, is not to overcorrect my posture when sitting. While a relaxed, straight back is a good thing, a concave one – with an exaggerated lumbar curve and shoulders pinned back – is definitely not.
A chat with Dr Dahiwadkar
What are some of the common complaints you receive?
Back pain, headaches, degenerative disorders and arthritis are all common. That said, I always do a full-body analysis of the patient even if, for example, the pain is localised to the wrist.
How do you go about correcting someone’s posture?
There are several tools we use. To start with, we take photos of the body with an iPad. Posture screening software takes these images, measures the parameters of the body and highlights any displacements to the front, back or side. This particular software allows me to check for any abnormalities such as spine misalignment or hip or shoulder asymmetry. I also study how the patient sits, moves and walks.
What are the next steps?
I draw up a programme of physiotherapy sessions for the patient, the duration and intensity of which depends on how bad their condition is. I also educate them about ways to correct the postural imbalances at home, at the infrastructure and joint level.
What’s unique about your approach to posture correction and physiotherapy at Zabeel Ladies Club?
One aspect that I focus mainly on is fascia. These are the layers of tissue beneath the skin that enclose and separate muscles from other internal organs. I correct problems at the level of the bone, as well as the joints, muscles, and importantly, the fascia. You won’t find these techniques in many other clinics. Physiotherapy practices usually involve little more than a series of stretches, repeated exercises and education. Here, we take a much more physical and practical approach.
• To book an appointment at Eden, Zabeel Ladies Club, call 043820000. Individual 60-minute sessions cost Dh400. For more information visit www.zlc.ae
rduane@thenational.ae
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Company Profile
Company name: Cargoz
Date started: January 2022
Founders: Premlal Pullisserry and Lijo Antony
Based: Dubai
Number of staff: 30
Investment stage: Seed
MATCH DETAILS
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WHAT IS THE LICENSING PROCESS FOR VARA?
Vara will cater to three categories of companies in Dubai (except the DIFC):
Category A: Minimum viable product (MVP) applicants that are currently in the process of securing an MVP licence: This is a three-stage process starting with [1] a provisional permit, graduating to [2] preparatory licence and concluding with [3] operational licence. Applicants that are already in the MVP process will be advised by Vara to either continue within the MVP framework or be transitioned to the full market product licensing process.
Category B: Existing legacy virtual asset service providers prior to February 7, 2023, which are required to come under Vara supervision. All operating service proviers in Dubai (excluding the DIFC) fall under Vara’s supervision.
Category C: New applicants seeking a Vara licence or existing applicants adding new activities. All applicants that do not fall under Category A or B can begin the application process through their current or prospective commercial licensor — the DET or Free Zone Authority — or directly through Vara in the instance that they have yet to determine the commercial operating zone in Dubai.
Company Profile
Name: HyveGeo
Started: 2023
Founders: Abdulaziz bin Redha, Dr Samsurin Welch, Eva Morales and Dr Harjit Singh
Based: Cambridge and Dubai
Number of employees: 8
Industry: Sustainability & Environment
Funding: $200,000 plus undisclosed grant
Investors: Venture capital and government
A Cat, A Man, and Two Women
Junichiro Tamizaki
Translated by Paul McCarthy
Daunt Books
How to register as a donor
1) Organ donors can register on the Hayat app, run by the Ministry of Health and Prevention
2) There are about 11,000 patients in the country in need of organ transplants
3) People must be over 21. Emiratis and residents can register.
4) The campaign uses the hashtag #donate_hope
A Long Way Home by Peter Carey
Faber & Faber
Stamp duty timeline
December 2014: Former UK chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne reforms stamp duty land tax (SDLT), replacing the slab system with a blended rate scheme, with the top rate increasing to 12 per cent from 10 per cent:
Up to £125,000 – 0%; £125,000 to £250,000 – 2%; £250,000 to £925,000 – 5%; £925,000 to £1.5m: 10%; More than £1.5m – 12%
April 2016: New 3% surcharge applied to any buy-to-let properties or additional homes purchased.
July 2020: Chancellor Rishi Sunak unveils SDLT holiday, with no tax to pay on the first £500,000, with buyers saving up to £15,000.
March 2021: Mr Sunak extends the SDLT holiday at his March 3 budget until the end of June.
April 2021: 2% SDLT surcharge added to property transactions made by overseas buyers.
June 2021: SDLT holiday on transactions up to £500,000 expires on June 30.
July 2021: Tax break on transactions between £125,000 to £250,000 starts on July 1 and runs until September 30.
