DEAR DR. DONOHUE: My grandson developed vitiligo when he was 6 years old. His mother has it. It breaks my heart when I see him. He is now 15 and in high school. The condition is affecting him emotionally. My son and daughter-in-law have taken him to the best doctors in New York. They used […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I would appreciate it if you’d share your knowledge on high-fructose corn syrup. I suffer with diarrhea after consuming only a small amount of it. Does this affect a significant number of other people the same way? Is it possible that this problem would happen with other sweeteners? I tolerate cane sugar […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Could vitamin B-12 in skin patches be provided for all of us with pernicious anemia so that we wouldn’t have to suffer from monthly injections? — B.W. ANSWER: No skin patch has been devised for delivery of vitamin B-12. However, it is acceptable to take B-12 by mouth. The vitamin dose given […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: My friend from grade school just died of an allergy. Is that possible? I know allergies make you feel miserable, but I never knew they killed. We had been best friends forever. She was my age, 32. That’s another thing I don’t understand. How could a healthy young woman die all of […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Every summer we spend a month in northern Canada on an inland lake. The water in the lake is so frigid that I never go in. My kids do. They come out shivering. That has me wondering if they could be doing some kind of harm to themselves. What do you think? […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: What are triglycerides? What do they do to you? I am a 55-year-old male in good health, or so I thought. My lab tests have shown I have elevated triglycerides. My doctor believes I need to make funeral arrangements. He told me to cut down on fats. I have never eaten much […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: In 1951, I caught polio, and it affected mostly my right leg. I didn’t have it as tough as those who had to be put in an iron lung, but I had trouble walking for many years. Finally, I could get around without too much difficulty. Now I’m losing strength in my […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I am very worried about my 50-year-old daughter. She’s hospitalized with hepatitis, which I thought always came from an infection. My daughter’s hepatitis didn’t come from an infection. It’s immune hepatitis. Please tell me what this is and what it involves. Is it deadly? My daughter is the single mother of three […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Do razor bumps happen only to black men? I never see any white guys with them, but I do see plenty of blacks with them. I’m a black man with a real crop. They hurt. I’d welcome any suggestions you can give me on how to handle them and how to prevent […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: My menstrual periods last two weeks, sometimes longer. I bleed so much that I am anemic and have to take iron pills. My doctor suggests I have my uterus removed because fibroids are causing this. I’m not eager for surgery. I am only 35, and my husband and I would like more […]