DEAR DR. DONOHUE: My cousin has been stricken with severe facial pain diagnosed as neuralgia. Internet information says it is the most extreme pain known to medicine and that attacks are random and brought on by something as simple as a light breeze on the face. How much of this is true? She takes epilepsy drugs, which have relieved the pain, but she is concerned about side effects. Is this curable? – J.S.

ANSWER: “Neuralgia” is word that means “nerve pain,” and it encompasses many distinct conditions. Your cousin has the kind of neuralgia called trigeminal neuralgia, an irritation of the nerve that brings sensations from the face to the brain. Its French name is “tic douloureux,” so given because of the facial spasm (tic) that happens when a painful attack occurs.

Attacks are brief but extremely painful. All of what you wrote is true. They can recur many times, and such innocent things as taking a drink of water, talking or a light touch on the cheek can provoke an explosion of pain. In between, people are on the edge of their seats waiting for another episode.

One explanation for the pain is that the face nerve has lost some of its insulating material, often because the nerve covering is frayed by the pulsations of a blood vessel that is looped around it.

Tegretol and Dilantin, two medicines for seizure control, can often reduce and even eliminate attacks. Your cousin should not dwell on possible side effects. Many people take these medicines for life without any consequences.

Another way of dealing with the problem is inserting into the nerve a fine probe that emits radio-wave energy, which inactivates the nerve. Glycerol injections can do the same.

A surgical procedure known as microvascular decompression places a sponge between the nerve and the encircling blood vessel to dampen the vessel’s pulsations on the nerve.

Your cousin has many options – many more than I have mentioned.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I am 66 years old and in good health. I have been eating two or three bananas a day for the past year or so. Now my friends and relatives tell me this is not good. Is this true?

I also drink five cups of tea with a teaspoon of honey every day. Is this harmful? – Anon.

ANSWER: What did they say that the bananas would do to you? I really like them, and I wouldn’t hesitate to eat that many every day. Bananas are an excellent source of potassium, and potassium helps keep blood pressure in the normal range. They also contain vitamins A, C and B-6. You won’t find a single atom of cholesterol in a banana. One banana does, however, have 109 calories, if you’re into calorie-counting.

Tea has become today’s cure-all. There is evidence that it lowers the risk of heart disease and heart attacks. It brings down cholesterol, even LDL cholesterol, the bad kind of cholesterol. It might afford protection against some kinds of cancer. Some of this might be a bit hard to sip, but it’s not all fantasy.

Four or five cups of tea a day is a reasonable amount.

There’s nothing wrong with honey, either. One teaspoon has 20 calories, slightly more than a teaspoon of table sugar.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Often I see articles about the suggested salt intake but nothing about cholesterol. Is there a number I can use as a daily guide? – J.M.

ANSWER: Some advisory panels have set the daily limit for cholesterol at 300 mg; others, at 200. That general range is acceptable.

Keep in mind that only a small percentage of blood cholesterol comes from the foods we eat. Most of it is made in the body. Saturated fats prime the body’s production of cholesterol.

Saturated fats are fats found in meats, dairy products and some oils. Only 7 percent to 10 percent of a person’s total daily calories should come from saturated fats. If a person eats 2,000 calories a day, at most 200 of those calories should be saturated-fat calories. That’s about 22 grams, less than an ounce.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I am 33 and uncircumcised. I hear that not being circumcised makes it easier to get infections. What are the pros and cons of it? Can it be safely done at age 33? Are there any dangers involved? – D.C.

ANSWER: Only 25 percent of the world’s males are circumcised. The remaining 75 percent lead quite healthy lives, and have throughout all human history.

It’s often stated that circumcised male infants have fewer urinary-tract infections than do uncircumcised. Evidence suggests that circumcised males have fewer genital-wart infections, and circumcision appears to afford a bit of protection against contracting AIDS and some other sexually transmitted diseases. None of this information has prompted public-health officials to advocate the operation. Circumcision done for ethnic or religious considerations is a different matter.

The operation is a rather simple procedure, but even simple operations can have complications – bleeding, infections and scar formation. It can be done at any age.

Dr. Donohue regrets that he is unable to answer individual letters, but he will incorporate them in his column whenever possible. Readers may write him or request an order form of available health newsletters at P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475. Readers may also order health newsletters from www.rbmamall.com.