Directory of health resources for healthcare professionals.

As well as being a food in itself, com (or maize) is used very commonly as a sweetener, and as a starch in food processing. To avoid com you have to stop eating the following foods:

Buttercorn Sweetcom

Corn on the Cob

Cornflakes

Popcorn

Maize

Maizemeal

Polenta

Corn Snacks

Do not use the following in cooking:

Corn Oil Maize Oil Cornflour Baking Powder

Avoid any processed foods containing corn or maize. Read labels. Avoid any foods containing the following, which are derived from com:

Corn Meal Com Starch Corn Syrup

The following ingredients are usually derived from corn, although they can be from other sources. Avoid any food containing these to be absolutely sure:

Dextrimaltose Fructose

Dextin Glucose

Dextrose Glucose Syrup

Avoid the following glucose products that are usually corn-based:

Glucose drinks (e.g. Lucozade) Glucose tablets (e.g. Dextrosol)

Avoid the following ingredients, which are derived either from corn or wheat:

Cereal Starch Edible Starch Modified Starch Starch

If a product contains vegetable oil of unspecified nature, it can often be corn oil. Avoid this. Similarly, if a product contains sweet ening or syrup of unspecified nature, it may well be corn. Avoid these.

To avoid all the above ingredients means avoiding most processed foods, especially sweetened ones such as snack foods, cakes, confectionery, biscuits and puddings. Children’s sweets are a common source. Pies, sauces, prepared savoury dishes, sauce mixes, custard powder, gravy mixes and stock cubes also often contain corn in the form of starch and oil. Corned beef and some brands of instant coffee also contain corn, although this is not always clear from the labels. If in doubt, leave a product out of your diet.

Corn is often, with other cereals, a base material for beers, lagers and spirits. Avoid these while excluding corn.

Corn is used in tabletting and coating many drugs, and in syrups for medicines. Take your doctor’s advice about avoiding prescribed medicine. Stop taking any home medicines. Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) is sometimes derived from corn.

Corn is sometimes used as a glue on envelopes and other similar uses. Avoid licking envelopes and stamps.

Corn starch is sometimes used to stiffen and seal paper and waxed cups and cartons. Avoid using these for food use. It is sometimes used as a starch on cotton clothes, for instance on some denim clothes, but washes out readily, and should not cause problems on contact after clothes have been washed several times.

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Now the detective work starts. If you have an obvious suspect, you may not need to read the rest of this section. If you feel ill after you eat a particular food that you eat only seldom – say on holiday or if you go out to eat – then you could go straight for that. Do you feel ill during or after visiting friends or family? If so, it could be something in their house – their pet, their gas fire, their carpet, their soap powder.

Do you feel unwell only if you wear certain clothes, or if you dress up to go out? If so, it could be the fibres or the clothes, or it could be toiletries or cosmetics that you do not usually wear. Do you get symptoms after doing DIY, doing a particular hobby, after specific lessons or activities at school? Think hard about when and where your symptoms occur.

You can also keep a symptoms diary. For a week or longer, note down whenever you feel particularly bad. Look and see if there’s any pattern. Do it for a few weeks, or longer if you need to.

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If you cannot tolerate wool or synthetics, keeping warm is one of life’s real challenges for the allergy sufferer. Here are some useful tips

Wear lots of layers. Layers of thin clothing trap air and keep warmth in. Lots of thin layers of clothing can be surprisingly warm. Wear a vest under a T-shirt under a sweatshirt. You might feel like the Michelin Man but you won’t look it! Wear thin socks under thicker ones, or leggings. And don’t forget the old string vest.

Cover your head. Fifty per cent of body heat loss is from the head. Wear scarves or knitted hats. Wear a scarf under a hat in really cold weather. Wear a hat or scarf indoors if you need to. Wear a nightcap – they had their uses!

Use silk if you tolerate it. Silk jersey underwear is relatively affordable, and offers lightweight warmth. Larger children can wear smaller women’s sizes. It washes well in a machine on a delicate cycle. Wear silk scarves, glove liners, socks and balaclavas.

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Buying or Borrowing Secondhand

Buying or borrowing equipment or toys secondhand, or using passed-on equipment, can often be a good solution for the chemically sensitive since fumes from new synthetic materials have usually worn off well. You need to take care, however, that anything you use has not been washed or cleaned with cleaning or laundry agents that you or your baby do not tolerate. Ask what has been used on anything you are thinking of acquiring. Take extra care with baby clothes and nappies – in particular, avoid anything washed in biological agents. Wash and air anything you buy before using yourself.

If you or your baby are sensitive to pets, animals, house dust mites, or tobacco smoke, also check that anything you buy is free of the things that upset you.

Toys, Books and Games

Hard plastic toys are rarely a problem for the chemically sensitive once they have been washed and aired for a while. Buy, open up and air toys before giving to baby to play. Washing plastic toys in a solution of domestic Borax or sodium bicarbonate (one tablespoonful to a bowl of warm water) helps speed the process of airing.

Wooden toys sometimes give problems with fumes from paints and varnishes when new. Again, allow them to air when new, or wipe with a solution of Borax or sodium bicarbonate.

For full advice on preventing and controlling house dust mites in soft toys. Buy washable soft toys wherever possible and wash and air frequently. If you or baby are very sensitive to synthetic materials, make or knit soft toys in cotton, and stuff with kapok.

Air new books before use to remove fumes.

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Skin tests for animal inhalant allergens are reasonably reliable at detecting allergy to animals, although results can depend on what precisely you are allergic to. If you are allergic to your cat’s saliva or urine, for instance, and you have a skin test for cat hair, the result will be negative even though you are allergic. Some people also find that they can be allergic to one breed or type of animal, but tolerate others; or that they react to one particular individual animal and not to others. Tests, therefore, are not always helpful. Your doctor can refer you for skin tests.

One simple test, which you can do yourself, is the Eye Test. Stroke the animal or bird for a few minutes. Rub one eye with your hand for a few seconds. If your eye becomes itchy and swollen, then this is an indication that you are sensitive to the animal or bird.

You can also do a Sniff Test on bedding, or litter, to check if these upset you. Sniff these gently, and see if symptoms develop.

Another method of detecting animal allergy is to avoid the animal or bird you suspect totally for a period of a week, and see if symptoms improve. If the animal or bird you suspect is your domestic pet, and you are not highly allergic, it will be sufficient to keep the animal or bird totally outside the house, and for you or the person affected not to go near it at all during that week. Try this first. For birds, this should be a conclusive test.

If, however, this is not conclusive for animals, or if you are more severely affected, you will need to carry out a rigorous cleaning programme to clear up traces of allergens from your home before you can be sure that your domestic pet is the source of trouble.

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Coping with a long period of impotence can be very difficult, especially when the cause is unknown and the prospect of restoring potency is uncertain. (This situation is becoming less common as diagnoses and treatments improve.) Marjorie and Bert had been married almost 20 years. Before they were married, Bert explained to Marjorie that he had a persistent erection problem. For the first years of their relationship, Marjorie was able to accept the situation, but as the years went on, she found it increasingly difficult to adjust.

Bert’s condition was such that sometimes he could get an erection, only to lose it before he could attempt intercourse. Some therapists think that this situation may be more difficult for a woman to accept than when the man is simply unable to get any erection at all. This is because when there is an erection, the woman becomes hopeful. She thinks, “Maybe this time things will work,” and she allows herself to become aroused. If she feels intercourse is the only acceptable expression of her desire, she’s frustrated when her partner loses his erection. And, like Marjorie, despite efforts to “not take it personally,” she may do just that. Her anger may build and feed on itself.

The years without a good sexual relationship have hurt both Bert and Marjorie. Her pain shows in her face, in her voice and in the way she twists and kneads her hands as she speaks. “We’re fortunate with other aspects of our relationship,” she says. “But I do have anger, and it is a lot deeper than Bert realizes. The last few months we’ve been withdrawn because of me. Hugging or kissing is okay, but fondling or anything else, no. I enjoy lying in his arms, but I don’t want to start anything we can’t finish.”

Marjorie has been deprived of something most married women take for granted. The lack of successful treatment and her self-blame and frustration have taken their toll. And because, like many of us, Marjorie regarded intercourse as the only “real” sex, perhaps she suffered even more. Allowing herself to explore other ways of having sex would keep her from being locked into a life without any sexual contact. She doesn’t want to leave Bert and he doesn’t want to leave her. Right now they’re in a standoff, both in pain. As in most sexual battles, there are no winners.

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If there is anything that a stressed-out person deeply appreciates, it’s a back massage. Strong hand movements up and down the back trigger nerve fibers and increase blood flow and circulation by dilating blood vessels. The result is a relaxation response that both of you will enjoy.

To start, have your partner lie on her stomach. Straddle her lower back comfortably. With your palms facing downward, make gentle circles around each shoulder blade. Then, using the knuckles of both hands, stroke her back from the neck down, about two inches away from either side of the spine. Explore the contours of her back with rotating fingers and deep kneading motions. Finish the massage with slow strokes. As one hand, with fingers spread wide, makes its way up the length of her back, the other should descend to the lower part.

As you progress, ask your partner how she feels. Find out if you are applying too much or too little pressure. Ascertain what feels good to her and what she doesn’t like. Tell her how touching her body and giving her pleasure affects you. Paying a person this kind of undivided attention can be a big turn-on.

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It’s very important for you to consider adding vitamin C supplements to your diet. The current RDA is 60 milligrams, and while it may be justified for disease prevention, it is far from optimal for a healthy life. This was proved in a study from the National Institutes of Health, which delved into the varying dosages to determine which was the most effective. The men taking part in the research were first fed a vitamin C-deficient diet. Then they were given it sequentially, in six specific dosages: 30, 60, 200, 400, 1,000, and 2,500 milligrams daily. The results showed that:

• On 30 milligrams the subjects were irritable and fatigued due to vitamin insufficiency.

• On 200 milligrams blood plasma levels were almost totally saturated with vitamin C.

• At 1,000 and 2,500 milligrams the blood plasma was completely

The NIH researchers now believe that an intake of up to 1,000 milligrams a day of vitamin C is safe (and doesn’t cause diarrhea), but that dosages above 400 milligrams have “no evident value.” But while food is the best source of this vitamin—citrus fruits are superior suppliers, and most other fruits and vegetables contain it—most Americans don’t eat enough every day to get the amount they need.

For optimal antioxidant power, I recommend a supplement of at least 200 milligrams of vitamin C daily. When taking this supplement, it’s best if you divide your dose in two, taking half in the morning and the other half in the evening. Since the body eliminates vitamin C in the urine in about twelve hours, taking both doses will ensure steady antioxidant protection throughout the day and night.

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Consider the comments from Leslie, a thirty-eight-year-old woman whose ten-year marriage was at a crossroads. “Will says he’s overjoyed that he can get the kind of erections he used to have. But we’ve been through too many tough times; we’ve fought a lot. He complained about the weight I gained, not realizing that it was in response to his not wanting to have sex with me. Of course, for a very long time I didn’t know—because he didn’t tell me—that he couldn’t have sex. I felt so rejected, food was my only consolation.

“Now he wants to have sex again. I have to ask myself: does he still care for me, or is it just that he hasn’t been able to have sex for a long time, wants to play catch-up, and is worried about straying from home and contracting AIDS? He’s so enraptured with his erections, I can’t honestly believe that they have much—if anything—to do with me. It makes me feel angry and used, and less attractive than ever.”

Leslie’s view is understandable, especially in the context of the way women judge themselves in our culture. Sadly, many women, beginning early in their lives, regulate their self-esteem through how they see their bodies, or think other people judge their physical attractiveness. We see evidence of this everywhere. Losing weight is a national obsession, supermodels are ideals for young girls, and prepubescent female athletes, many whose growth and menstrual cycles are stunted, are heroes for impressionable children.

Aging is, for many women, an enemy that must be fought at all costs. Looking and feeling the best they can while accepting their age is not their goal. Instead, beating the clock is, no matter how much self-esteem is sacrificed in the process. When self-value is solely reliant on the reactions of others to how one looks, problems are inevitable. Certainly ours isn’t the first culture to put such emphasis on looks. However, the advent of a new world of sexual medicine is bound to exert more pressure on the way women view their appeal, both physically and emotionally.

According to psychologist Dr. Robert Broad, at New York’s Mount Sinai Hospital, “In our society, how a woman attracts and arouses a man is a primary source of self-esteem. That initial appeal is often based on how a woman looks. This component of self-evaluation is a key factor to how a woman will respond to a man with erectile dysfunction—and how she will feel about herself.”

The more vulnerable a woman feels—regardless of her age—the more she will question herself, both as the source of a man’s ED and as the object of his attention.

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Diet

High-fat diets have received a lot of bad press lately, much of it well deserved. A high-fat diet helps clog up your arteries and can cause blockages, harming arteries that are essential for erection.

High-calorie diets can lead to overweight, as William is discovering. In a person susceptible to diabetes, overweight can make the illness appear. And diabetes can lead to potency problems.

To help keep your arteries clear, your heart healthy and your circulatory system fit, we advise you to eat a low-fat diet, and keep your body at a healthy weight. William is fond of heavy meals, but a menu of frequent he-man dinners—with the main ingredient a large, juicy, fat-marbled steak—can eventually lead to potency problems.

Exercise

Exercise is a wonderful stress-reducer, and William has just been adding to his tension by eliminating his noontime squash games. And exercise is certainly a help in keeping weight normal. The more calories you burn, the less likely you are to be fat. Fat can lead to health problems which can then result in erection problems.

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