https://www.facebook.com/113602957089954/

Dr. obilor Health Informatics, Port Harcourt (2026)

05/05/2026

When lizards become a source of protein

Culture has created so much diversity in our life affair and when it comes to food, it has shaped us.

🔥Okiti-kpo (lizard), common in our homes where they are mostly found basking in the sun on the buildings and tree trunks are rare animals in some societies because they are being hunted for food out there. What actually made my culture feel that okiti-kpo shouldn't be eaten?

🔥When he described how the red cap lizard, Agama lizard, is toasted in their homes, it made me question the reason why we left these animals running all over while we die or hunger, looking for many to buy beef and fish. It can be fried just like fish and made into dry meat 🍖 and when it is made in soup, children 'begin' to contend for the head 😊 "daddy, na me go chop the head" and at that point, I wanted to ask what is unique about the head. That's a discussion for another day.

🔥Lizard is a high source of protein, a nutrient that helps in building the body tissue and for the repair of worn-out cells. How then is cow meat better than lizard the meat of lizard?

🔥Okiti-kpo contains fat, a macronutrients needed for building cell membrane, provide energy and helps in the digestion of vitamins like A,D,E,K. Some hormones are derived from fats.

🔥The meat also supplies calorie through its carbohydrate content. Micronutrients like zinc, iron etc are contained in the meat

🔥The question isn't about the nutritional values because obviously it is very nutritious. Again, the question isn't about toxicity because obviously okiti-kpo isn't poisonous and it's safe to eat. But i think it boils down to the impact our culture/religion have towards us.

"Garnish the meat with fresh pepper 🌶️ and onions into 'nkwobi' [meat source], add garden eggs and otanji (leaf) and fresh palm wine by your side and you will testify" these were his last words

What do you guys think? If na temptation, e be like say na to fall into it better pass ooh 😂😂😂 shouldn't I try it?

01/05/2026

Wall geckos, are they really harmful?

☀️When he got to the house, the rooms were in shambles, everything in the house was turned upside down including the mattress and boxes. Madam was seen sweating profusely while holding a broom and deliberately searching for something. "You are back", she looked at the husband; "I was just trying to kill all the wall geckos" she said. It was at that point the husband recalled the rumour surrounding the wall geckos where it was alleged that it killed an entire household.

🔥Wall geckos are reptiles, lizard-like animals that live in the houses. They are quite gentle and crawl on the wall and ceiling. These animals feed on cockroaches, mosquitoes, flies, beetles, ants, spiders and other insects/ smaller animals.

🔥Geckos in a broad sense are not dangerous to humans. They run away from humans and in a situation involving a bite accidentally, they are not venomous. However, their stool and urine can harbour bacteria and hence the need to cover food properly. Also, as it's common with other animals, some bacteria (microorganisms,) can live with them which raises the risk of contamination if they "play basketball" in your garri (food) 😄

How wall geckos help in disease control

💥Wall geckos feed on insects and other small animals some of which (insects) are known to be carriers of certain diseases. Mosquitoes transmit malaria while flies and cockroaches carry organisms that cause dysentery and typhoid. Wall geckos feed on these animals and indirectly help in disease control by breaking the cycle of disease transmission. It's a natural means of controlling vectors.

🔥Most stories we heard about geckos are false: their poisonous skin, the lethality of their bite and the entire household/family dying from gecko are myths and at least the later is unsubstantiated.

One story I heard about gecko during my childhood was its penchant for hiding spoons 😂. I can't recall the number of times I blamed the gecko for hiding my spoon 🥄🤣because that's what the society told me. Allegation on innocent gecko...😊 What do you know about geckos?

28/04/2026

The poisonous crabs

The toxins can stop the heart beat and cause difficulty breathing 😱. There are different types of crabs that can be seen in swamps and sea shores. Some are terrifying while others have amazing colour combinations. But traditionally, only certain species are consumed as foods. Growing up in a riverside, one would question why only certain types of crabs are consumed.

☀️Some crabs are toxic to the body. They contain certain lethal toxins like tetrodoxins and saxitoxins. These are neurotoxins that can cause paralysis of the muscles and the individual can develop difficulty breathing and can potentially stop heartbeats

☀️Unfortunately, cooking doesn't destroy the toxins because they are stable to heat. Most of these toxins come from bacteria that infect and live inside the crab. Luckily for the crabs, the toxins are not harmful to them.

☀️Devils crab, toxic reef crab, flora egg crab, mosaic crab etc are some of the crabs that can potentially harbour these toxins.

☀️Look at the pictures very well, these are some crabs that should be avoided. But it seems I have eaten some of these; probably uninfected ones without the toxins😧

26/04/2026

Crab 🦀 a nutrient packed animal.

Crab is one animal that receives less attention when compared to its nutritional values. The high protein contents is important for building and for the repair of damaged tissues in the body.

🦀Crab is a wonderful food for those that want to maintain a healthy body. At a time where people are adding so much weight because of diets rich in fats and carbohydrates (and lack of exercise), crab provides a leeway out of obesity. The meat contains less fats and carbohydrates making it an excellent food for those who want to reduce their body weight. In the same manner, it is good for those living with diabetes due to its low carbohydrate content

🦀Crab is a good source of calcium and phosphorus, which are important for healthy teeth and bones. The mineral component of bones, hydroxyapatite, is made of calcium and phosphate. For normal nerve conduction and muscle contractions, calcium is crucial

🦀Crab contains iron. Again, this is essential for blood formation as the red blood cells that help transport oxygen contain iron: iron is a component of a normal red blood cell (haemoglobin). Other nutritional components like potassium, zinc, selenium etc have various functions that support the metabolic needs of the body

🦀Vitamins like B12 found also in crab enhances brain and neuronal function, maintains the communication network in the nerves and synapses and helps control hemocysteine, a chemical that can potentially damage the brain and neurones if the the level builds up.
Other vitamins also play a key role in other body functions.

Have you tried fisherman (soup) food? Seafood is nutritious and many times, healthy foods are simply natural. Crab is also called ariena, orkorro, okora in some societies and the words largely represent the sound made when it is chewed😂. What is the name in your local parlance?

For more follow Dr. obilor Health Informatics and like our post to support us

23/04/2026

Do mosquitoes transmit viral hepatitis?

Since hepatitis B and C can be transmitted through contacts with infected blood, some people assume that when a mosquito feeds on an infected person, the blood collected is transferred to another individual in the same manner that malaria parasite is transmitted from one person to another via the bites of mosquito.

But here is the fact:
The virus doesn't not have the ability to survive inside the body of mosquito if it's picked up during blood meal. The virus becomes inactivated. And remember, what the mosquitoes transfer to the victim is not actually blood but saliva. With malaria transmission, the parasites have the ability to survive and reproduce inside the body of the mosquito and the sporozoites are found in their salivary and during blood meal, these are unknowingly transferred to the victims.

In a nutshell, even though mosquitoes transit certain diseases while feeding on blood, they cannot transmit viral hepatitis. The biological nature of these viruses (B&C) are not sustainable in the gut of mosquitoes and are therefore destroyed.

Health Informatics Team

21/04/2026

Between hepatitis B and hepatitis C, which one is more preferable? If you are to choose one, which of them would you choose?

First, both viral hepatitis can cause chronic liver disease as well as liver cancer. In fact, they are the commonest cause of primary liver cancer.

But here are the twists:.

🤜Most cases of hepatitis B are cleared from the body within a short time (6months) of infection without any treatment
🤜about 90 out of 100 infected persons recover without any treatment.
🤜Only a small percentage of adults with hepatitis B (10 out of 100 infected persons) have the infection remain in the body, which can pose a risk to developing chronic liver disease and liver cancers, and in this condition the disease is largely not curable but manageable.
🤜here is the lovely part of it, hepatitis B generally is preventable with vaccine, and global Immunisation campaigns have made it possible for people to be vaccinated against it right from childhood.

✊Hepatitis C on the other hand also causes liver disease and increases the risk of liver cancer.
✊Although the body has the ability to also clear the virus, but less than half of the infected persons recover without treatment unlike hepatitis B where up 90% recovers without treatment. This means after infection with hepatitis C a relatively large number of persons remain with the virus as chronic carriers after 6 months
✊ But here it gets really interesting, most people with hepatitis C are cured with drugs unlike chronic hepatitis B that has no cure. More than 95% of people with chronic hepatitis C who receive antiviral medications are cured✌️🙌
✊But here again it gets a setback, there is no vaccine for the prevention of hepatitis C😞

Which of them do you think is better to have, hepatitis C or Hepatitis B?

For more health tips, follow Dr. obilor Health Informatics

Health Informatics Team

17/04/2026

Hepatitis C, the silent liver destroyer

Nearly 50 million people are living with chronic hepatitis C according to the World Health Organisation. The disease may not show any symptoms for many years, yet it gradually destroys the liver cells and at last, leads to cirrhosis ( a condition in which liver cells are replaced by fibrosis, which progressively marks the end of liver function) or cancer.

Unlike hepatitis B where more than 95% of infections in adults resolve without treatment in 6 months, hepatitis C takes a slight deviation as only about 20-48% clears in 6months. The rest becomes chronic and raises the question of complications. The absence of a vaccine for hepatitis C makes it more problematic unlike hepatitis B that can be prevented by vaccines.

I know what is running through our minds right now "hepatitis C is a very bad guy 🙂" but the good news is this, unlike chronic hepatitis B that is not curable, hepatitis C can be cured with anti viral medication. At least there is a sigh of relief now 😊

Welcome to the series on hepatitis C

Follow us as we work through hepatitis C. Don't forget to like and add your comments; it helps us a great deal in bringing these updates to you.

Health Informatics Team

15/04/2026

Prevention of hepatitis B

👉Vaccination is an effective means of preventing hepatitis. Classically, it is incorporated into the National Programme for Immunisation (NPI) and newborn and infants are vaccinated. Adults who were not vaccinated against hepatitis B can as well receive the vaccine while high risk groups like health workers should receive booster doses even if they were initially immunised during childhood. Hepatitis B vaccine provides a long-term immunity against the virus

👉 Pregnant women who have hepatitis B should get a drug called hepatitis B immunoglobulin for the baby and should be given immediately after delivery (not exceeding 72hrs). This again is an effective way of preventing the child from contracting Hepatitis B from the mother during delivery. If the mother's blood enters the baby's circulation, the drug quickly looks for the virus and neutralises them (passive immunity)

👉Hepatitis B is se£ually transmitted infection and can be acquired by having unprotected s£* with an infected person. The use of latex (cønd0n) prevents the transfer of the virus 🦠 during intimate relationship.

👉As having multiple se£ual partners increases the risk of acquiring hepatitis B infection, being faithful to ones partner also offers protection against the virus.

👉 Avoid sharing sharps and needles. And for health workers who are exposed to blood and work hazards, the use of universal precaution is very important.

👉 Donated blood should always be screened for hepatitis B and other related blood borne infection.

These are some measures needed to prevent hepatitis. Periodic screening can help identify asymptomatic infection. And if infected do not panic, most cases can resolve without treatment. See your doctor for a follow up

For more health tips, follow us and give us 👍

Health Informatics Team

13/04/2026

How can one acquire hepatitis B

Hepatitis B is a se£ually transmitted infection. It can be acquired through unprotected s£ual interçûßs with an infected person. Just as HIV, gonorrhea, syphilis...are transmitted through such means, so also is Hepatitis B. This means that individuals complaining of a discharge through the private part, pain during urination, frequent urination, wounds at the private part, itching; should in addition to other tests, check for hepatitis B. This risk of acquiring hepatitis B is increased with multiple s£ual partners. Remaining faithful to ones partner can help prevent this

A child can acquire hepatitis B infection from an infected mother during child birth. The virus is found in the blood and vaginal secretions and the child is exposed during delivery. Breastfeeding mother with cracked ni***es/ulcers can potentially transmit the virus to the baby during breastfeeding. Hepatitis B infected mother are often advised to suspend breastfeeding in cases of bleeding through the ni***es as is possible in cracked ni***es, wounds or ulcers around the ni***es untill the lesion heals.

Sharing of sharps like needles increases the risk of hepatitis B transmission. This is common among people who abuse intravenous drugs. The same syringe and needle are shared among them. Small amount of blood that is lodged in the needle is passed on to another person who is using the same needle, and the infection can be transmitted if someone has the disease/infection.

Health workers handling blood and blood products, and sharps have increased risk of acquiring the virus. A needle prick accident is common among health workers and if the patient is positive for the virus, the risk of transmission is high.

The major route of hepatitis B transmission is through contaminated blood. This can occur during blood transfusion is improperly or unscreened blood is used for transfusion. If the donor is infected with hepatitis B, the recipient will likewise acquire the virus through transfusion. This is the reason donors blood is screamed for hepatitis B amidst other blood borne infections before transfusion.

How can hepatitis B be prevented?
Can my child be safe if I have hepatitis B

Follow us as we keep you updated on relevant issues about human health

Health informatics team

08/04/2026

Is it true that hepatitis B infection can be acquired through vaccination?

⭐Hepatitis B is one of the diseases that is prevented through vaccination and it's incorporated into national programmes on immunization.

⭐One issue that is raised by certain people who do not support vaccination is disease transmission. Some hold the opinion that one who receives hepatitis B vaccine is bound to acquire the virus through vaccination. This information is not correct; it's very wrong.

⭐What is injected isn't the virus but a synthesized part of the virus antigen. When the actual hepatitis B virus enters the body, because of the strangeness of its structure, the immune system quickly recognises the pattern and builds up an immune response against it. On identifying the pattern of the virus that triggers immune response (surface antigen), scientists were able to create only that portion that triggers an immune response called the Surface Antigen and formulated it into a vaccine using a recombinant DNA technology.

⭐The good news is that once this vaccine is injected, the body creates an immune response similar to what happens when the body is infected by the virus. This is because, what stimulates the primary immune response is the structure of the virus and as long as the body is exposed to the structural pattern of the virus, it sees it as an infection. The essence of vaccination is for the body to produce antibodies (immune response) against any future infection by the virus so that the body will be ready to fight it effectively.

⭐Because the active agent in hepatitis B vaccine is a synthesized surface antigen; some people can test positive for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) within a short time (1-3 weeks) especially in children after receiving the vaccine and the result returns negative afterwards. This positive result doesn't represent hepatitis B infection and is called a False-Positve result. Since the vaccine triggers the immune system to produce immunity; antibodies to the hepatitis B surface antigen will be positive and this is the reason we needed vaçcination in the first place, to produce these soldiers that will fight the virus in rhe future.

⭐The Core Antigen is only found in hepatitis B virus and therefore is absent in hepatitis B vaccination (because the vaccine doesn't contain the virus). This means that the vaccine lacks the ability to produce the virus since it lacks DNA. In the same vein, antibody against the core protein is only found in hepatitis B viral infection and it's absent in vaccination (again vaccine doesn't contain the live virus)

⭐Hepatitis E antigen which depicts viral replication is again absent following vaccination because hepatitis B vaccine doesn't contain the virus. In the same way, antibodies to hepatitis E antigen is not present following vaccination became the vaccine doesn't contain the virus.

💥Hepatitis B vaccine is an effective measure in preventing viral hepatitis B as it provides a long-term immunity against the virus. It doesn't cause hepatitis B infection

07/04/2026

The importance of regular checkup in hepatitis B infection.

👂Knowing that uncontrolled hepatitis B infection can destroy the liver and increase the risk of liver cancer, it is important therefore that those with hepatitis B be closely monitored. This assessment helps us identify the effect in the liver and the behaviour of the virus.

✍️If the amount (number) of the virus is high, it shows there are more liver cells infected, which increases the risk of the complications. Hepatitis B viral load (DNA-PCR) gives a quantity assessment of hepatitis B virus in the blood. If the value begins to drop, it means the body is winning the battle. It is important to mention that in acute hepatitis B infection, the viral load (initially high) can become zero (within 6 months of infection), and such individual is cured. But with a periodic increase in viral load, it tells us that an intervention is needed or our current intervention isn't working, and the need to try another. In the same way, when the value begins to drop periodically, it gives a consolidation that our intervention is making a positive impact.

✍️ What is the state of the virus in the body? Are they multiplying or are they quiet? This information helps us a great deal in decision making because if the virus is rapidly multiplying, we expect to have more and more hepatitis B virus. It's like looking at the number of pregnant women giving birth to babies; this is what hepatitis B (e) antigen measures. If it's positive, it tells us that the virus is rapidly replicating and highly infectious [the hepatitis B man and woman too dey born plenty children😅]. With this information, it becomes necessary to target the virus with drugs that can stop it's replication and allow the body to deal with the existing ones; we break the chain.
And by the time we start to see the body's soldiers destroying this hepatitis (e) antigen, we develop this sight of relief that we are achieving something positive 💪 imagine when they lose the ability to multiply (when we give them contraceptives😅), isn't that superb.

✍️What damage has the virus done to the liver?
We can get this information by carrying out the test called liver function test. It measures some enzymes released by the liver which are increased following destruction of the liver cells; and how much it has affected liver functions. Yes, people with hepatitis B can have a normal liver function and that's reassuring even in chronic cases. However, when liver functions becomes deranged, it may signal a worsening or deteriorating health conditions, which needs interventions.

Regular follow up twice a year or as deemed necessary by the physician is appropriate in those with chronic hepatitis for monitoring disease progression, and to institute appropriate measures for the management of viral Hepatitis B.

If this post makes sense to you, give us 👍 let's have your input and share to enlighten others

Health Informatics Team

04/04/2026

Hepatitis B: what are the signs and symptoms?

A lot of people infected with hepatitis B virus won't show any symptoms. Some of them may not be aware until the infection resolves. In a society where every illness is initially viewed as malaria and typhoid, they treat the symptom with antimalaria and antibiotics. Most of the symptoms resolve, not because of the treatment, but because many cases of hepatitis B in adults resolve without any treatment. some people only become aware of their hepatitis B status following screening as is routinely done during antenatal and other periodic blood check.

Because hepatitis virus infects the liver cells, watch out for the following:

👂right upper abdominal pains. The liver is located at the right upper part of the tummy, and health problems involving the liver can cause pain in this region. Hepatitis B can present with such pain.

👂The eyes may appear yellow 🟡. This is because the virus destroys some liver cells hindering their ability to remove a toxin called bilirubin. Bilirubin is a yellow pigment that is detoxified and excreted by the liver. When liver cells are damaged by hepatitis viruses, bilirubin builds up in the body and gets deposited on the skin, eyes (sclera) and mucus membrane causing yellow discoloration. If you notice any yellow discoloration of the eyes, hepatitis B is one of the tests that should be carried out.

👂Intense itching over the body can occur in hepatitis B infection. This can result from the accumulation of the toxins under the skin, and immune response to the virus. If one is experiencing itching with or without rashes, hepatitis B is one of the infections to be considered.

👂Dark, coke or tea-coloured urine may signal hepatitis B infection. Some liver problems (which can also be caused by hepatitis B) will lead to the leakage of bilirubin into the blood, which is excreted by the kidney and turns urine dark.

👂trivial symptoms of hepatitis B may easily be confused with other health problems. These include Fever, headache, loss of appetite, feeling of unwell, vomiting, joint pains etc. these looks like common malaria symptoms right?

These are some of the common symptoms and when present, hepatitis B is one of the tests to be carried out. See your health care provider.

If you enjoy our posts, follow up for more and hit the 👍 button.

Health Informatics Team

Dr. obilor Health Informatics