Why did my lips feel like they were on fire? Ask the GP DR MARTIN SCURR

Several years ago my lips, tongue, throat and esophagus felt like they were on fire. I saw a consultant who was very inattentive and immediately said that I had burning mouth syndrome, that older women suffered from it and that there was nothing that could be done. But when I eliminated soy products from my diet – I had dramatically increased my intake to reduce hot flashes – everything went back to normal. Now if I accidentally eat soy, my mouth will flare up within minutes.

Angela Donnelly, Cambridge.

Your experience points out a pitfall that medical professionals can fall into: arriving at a diagnosis that seems to fit and not stepping back to reconsider the conclusion, so enamored are we with our own genius!

You were soon diagnosed with burning mouth syndrome, which causes symptoms like yours and is most common in middle-aged women, as you were told.

I suspect that your negative experience (in your longer letter you say that you had to ask the consultant to examine your mouth, which he reluctantly did) has made you rightly and justifiably skeptical.

Soy products are a popular remedy for hot flashes during menopause because they contain plant estrogen (File image)

When people rule out a particular food to determine the cause of unexplained symptoms, often nothing is revealed.

But happily, this resulted in relief from your burning mouth sensations. Then you discovered that when you resumed consuming foods containing soy, your symptoms quickly returned.

Soy products are a popular remedy for hot flashes during menopause because they contain plant estrogen, although the evidence for their benefits is mixed.

Soybeans and products such as soy sauce and tofu are one of the most common sources of food allergies in infants and children, although this is less common in adults (who tend to be more allergic to milk, fish and eggs).

Why you would experience this allergy later in life is not clear, but essentially the membranes lining your mouth responded to the soy molecules by producing an immune protein (or antibody) called IgE, which in turn triggers the release of histamine and other substances. caused. chemicals, resulting in a burning sensation. The only treatment is to avoid all foods containing soy products.

Most of my contemporaries – I’m 83 – have had the shingles shot. When I asked during my surgery if I should get it, they said no because I hadn’t had chickenpox.

Lee Janogly, North London.

Although you say you didn’t have chickenpox as a child, it’s not uncommon for this to be overlooked. I have seen children with only seven spots where the mother thought they were a few insect bites, but they were unmistakably chicken bites. smallpox.

Despite saying you didn’t have chickenpox as a child, it’s not unusual for this to be overlooked, writes Dr Martin Scurr (File image)

Infection provides lifelong immunity, although the virus remains in the body and is trapped by the immune system near the spinal cord. Later in life, factors such as age or poor health suppress the immune system, allowing the virus to escape and travel along a nerve, causing herpes zoster (also called shingles) and a blistering and very painful rash and an acute illness.

The only way you can be sure that you have not had chickenpox earlier in your life is for your doctor to send a blood sample to a laboratory to check the antibodies. If you have never been infected, catching chickenpox at your age (from someone who has the virus or from shingles) would be very serious. In adults, a common complication is viral pneumonia, which is potentially fatal.

One in four people over the age of 50 will get shingles, and vaccination provides a high degree of protection. There are two vaccines: Zostavax, which works against the chickenpox virus and shingles, and a newer vaccine, Shingrix, which is more effective against shingles and is now the standard.

The question of whether you should get Zostavax is controversial because it is a live virus and can theoretically cause shingles, although this is highly unlikely. It is a question you should ask your doctor when you request a blood test. You should know this and isolate from anyone who has shingles until then, at least until the rash has completely healed.

In my opinion…GP practices need better funding

The NHS “is the closest thing to a religion that the English have,” said the Tory chancellor Nigel Lawson, “with those who practice it considering themselves a priesthood.” So where does this leave the herd?

As early as 1984, a well-known healthcare economist, Alain Enthoven, recognized that the NHS depends on the dedication and idealism of its staff, but he noted that somehow the interests of patients are being lost. I think for many people trying to make an appointment to see their GP, this is all too true.

That loss is measurable; The Institute for Public Policy Research has calculated that there would have been 240,000 fewer deaths between 2010 and 2020 (before the pandemic) if the UK’s mortality data had matched that of other comparable European countries.

An important factor is probably not getting access to healthcare in a timely manner.

The answer is better financing of primary care than of hospitals, since after all, that is where up to 90 percent of health care is provided.

Write to Dr. Scurr from Good Health, Scottish Daily Mail, 20 Waterloo Street, Glasgow G2 6DB or email: drmartin@dailymail.co.uk. Dr. Scurr cannot enter into personal correspondence. Answers should be taken in a general context. If you have health problems, consult your own doctor.