To avoid eating soya, you have to stop eating:
Soya flour
Soya milk
Soya beans
Tofu
Soya oil TVP
Soya sauce
Miso
Soya, in its various forms, is found commonly as an ingredient in processed foods (e.g. pies, bakery, prepared dishes). Read labels to see if any of the above products are mentioned. If a product contains vegetable oil of unspecified nature, it can often be soya oil. Avoid this. If it contains vegetable protein, this is invariably soya, and should be avoided.
Lecithin is sometimes derived from soya and sometimes from eggs; products containing this (e.g. ice cream and margarine) are best avoided to be absolutely sure.
Many breads now contain soya flour as well as wheat flour. You will not know this if you buy unlabelled bread from a local baker or wholefood shop. Check with them as to what ingredients they use. Avoid bread if you are not sure whether it contains soya or not.
If you are chemically sensitive, you may react to the water used to make up processed soya milks rather than soya itself .
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In intra-dermal tests, a higher dose of allergen extract is introduced just under the outer skin using a syringe. A similar weal and flare response within 10-15 minutes indicates a positive reaction. In addition, you may get a late skin reaction – a raised red swollen bump around the test site – about five or six hours later. Sometimes there may be a late skin reaction on the following day.
The infra-dermal test is much less commonly used in the UK than the skin-prick test. It can be painful, it has a slight risk of adverse reaction, and some people feel unwell on testing. It can, however, be useful in that it can detect positive reactions where skin-prick tests have previously been negative.
Patch tests are used to confirm a diagnosis of contact dermatitis – a delayed allergic skin reaction to something you have touched. Patch tests can be very useful in identifying specific things that you can then avoid. Small patches containing a range of common allergens, mostly chemicals, are attached to the skin, usually to the upper back. The sites of the tests are marked on the skin. The patches are left there for 48 hours, and then removed.
The sites are examined for reaction and then left unwashed for a further 48 hours, when the sites are examined once more. A raised red bump at the site of the allergen is an indication of positive reaction. False positives and false negatives can result, so once again patch tests are used mainly to corroborate a case history. You can use patch tests to test specific things you suspect – for instance, a fabric, a leaf or a chemical you use at work or school. You can also do a home version of the patch test for yourself.
Anti-histamine drugs block the release of histamine and can interfere with skin test results. Such drugs should not be taken for several days before testing.
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If you are exceptionally sensitive to resins, wear wool, pure silk or pure synthetics if possible. You can buy resin-free cotton clothes -usually called ‘formaldehyde-free’ – for babies, children and adults. Sources are given below.
You can also find certain kinds of cotton clothes that are much less highly treated than others. These are often well tolerated even if you are sensitive to resins. If you are unable to wear wool, silk or synthetics, and want to have a wider choice of cotton clothing, choose relatively untreated cotton clothing as follows:
Try
Avoid
Take care with
Cotton jersey
Cotton poplin
Brushed cotton
Cotton fleece
Cotton drill
Cotton lawns
Cotton corduroy
Denim
Cotton voiles
Cotton towelling
Easy-care
Knitted cotton sweaters
Permanent Press
Indian cottons
Sanforised
Third World cottons
Wash New Clothes
Resins wash out readily, but not all fabrics or clothes are washed during manufacture, and new clothes can have very high levels of fumes. You can reduce the level to tolerable amounts by washing new clothes before wearing them. If you add a dessertspoonful of sodium bicarbonate to the water, this also helps to neutralise the resins. You may have to wash new clothes several times before you can wear them, but, for virtually everyone, this is sufficient to avoid any major problems. Unless you are extremely sensitive washing clothes well will make resins tolerable.
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Synthetic and latex materials are conventionally described as non-allergenic and are often recommended by doctors in the belief that they do not cause allergy and that house dust mites do not thrive in synthetic materials. This advice is misleading. Synthetic and latex are useful as an alternative to wool and feathers, which commonly cause allergy, but people who are chemically sensitive often react to synthetics and latex (including plastic mattress covers as well as the bedding itself).
Synthetics and latex also harbour dust mites. To thrive, mites need warmth, moisture and human skin, bacteria or moulds as food. Bedclothes, pillows and mattresses of synthetics and latex provide these just as natural materials do. Some synthetic bedding can be washed and this helps in controlling dust mite allergy in that the mite’s faecal pellets (which are for most people the allergens) are washed out. But mites are not themselves killed by washing at the low temperatures necessary for virtually all synthetics. So they can survive the wash and continue producing faecal pellet allergens. Synthetic and latex bedding are therefore not an automatic choice for people with allergies and chemical sensitivity. They are a good choice if you are:
• allergic to wool, feathers, cotton or other natural fibres
• not chemically sensitive
Do not use a plastic or vinyl mattress cover even if you do not react to plastics. It prevents the mattress airing, keeps in damp and aggravates house dust mite problems. Use a small plastic sheet under the area that needs protection against bedwetting.
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If you want to keep a dog, some breeds are reported to be less troublesome than others. Allergy is very idiosyncratic, however, and these may not work for you, so take care. Many people with allergies say that dogs that require a lot of grooming are more likely to cause reactions than dogs that do not, because more hair is shed and more contact is necessary. Dogs that have shorter, wiry hair generally shed more dander than long-haired dogs, but dogs with soft, curly hair, such as small poodles’ are sometimes found to be less provocative.
If you are blind and have to keep a guide dog, it may be best to choose a type of dog that sheds less hair, or needs less grooming, such as curly-coated retrievers, or cross labradors.
Be careful with children and animals at school. Small mammals are often kept in schoolrooms and these may be responsible for your child’s reactions. School cats are also often allowed to roam out of school hours and can leave allergens to upset the exceptionally sensitive. Watch out for the ‘school run’ if your child travels regularly in a car in which dogs travel.
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• Learn all you can about erections and impotence problems by reading this book and talking to your doctor.
• Don’t give up on sexual pleasure even if your partner isn’t interested. Try to maintain physical contact with him, and give yourself pleasure by masturbating.
• Don’t let the problem control your life. Put energy into having some positive experiences. Don’t withdraw from friends, family and activities you enjoy.
• Take care of yourself. This is a difficult, stressful time for you, and you need extra amounts of support— which your partner, preoccupied with his own feelings, is probably unable to give. Talk to a close friend, or seek professional help with coping. Eat well and exercise to combat stress.
• Part of taking care of yourself is recognizing that most cases of impotence have nothing to do with the man’s attraction to his partner. Love may be strong, but it can’t open clogged blood vessels or overcome other physical conditions.
• Examine your attitudes towards erection. One woman said about her husband, “If I can’t give him an erection, I don’t want anything to do with him.” Her insecurity caused a lot of pain for herself and her husband. She was a victim of the myth that her partner’s erection would validate her worth as a woman.
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Lionel, for example, a 54-year-old, could not get an erection after he had surgery to correct severe back pain, because the operation damaged some crucial nerves. Lionel had a very strong relationship with his wife, Terry, and the couple adapted to this situation by expressing warmth and closeness in other ways. But they still felt something was lacking. For seven long years Lionel and Terry lived this way. Doctors told them it was very unlikely that Lionel’s body would heal itself. If Lionel wanted to have intercourse, he had two choices: a penile implant, or the shots.
After some discussion with his wife, Lionel decided to give the shots a try. After all, if the injections didn’t work, he could still have implant surgery. What did he have to lose?
Like some other patients with nerve damage, Lionel was extremely sensitive to the medication. The first injection of only a small dose of the drug brought him a very satisfactory erection— and brought a big smile to Terry’s face.
It took several office visits to determine the best amount of medication for Lionel, and to make sure he didn’t suffer any side effects. Then he and Terry were ready to try the shots at home. Terry was eager to learn the technique, so both of them learned how to give the injections. In fact, the couple later reported that giving the shot had become Terry’s job.
As long as Lionel keeps his regular checkup appointments to make sure the shots are working well for him and not causing any problems, he should be able to continue the shots for an indefinite period of time. But because the injections are so new, at this point we don’t know the possible long-term side effects and complications.
Will the shots provide a permanent solution for patients like Lionel? Right now, it’s just too soon to make such a prediction. As we pointed out earlier, repeated injections can cause scarring in the penis, and scar tissue will not expand like normal tissue. So it’s conceivable that scarring from long-term use of the shots could actually prevent a man from being able to get an erection.
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Once you decide that you need help with your sex life, you’ll have to choose among an array of doctors and other health professionals—an array that might seem confusing and even contradictory. There are urologists, endocrinologists, general practitioners, psychiatrists and numerous other therapists who may claim to have the answer to your problem.
And to add to the confusion, there are widely varying levels of competency within each specialty when it comes to dealing with impotence. Not all physicians are well informed about erection problems. And some doctors just aren’t comfortable discussing potency. Professionals can be vulnerable to the same distorted ideas, hang-ups and myths that plague the rest of us.
You need to find a health professional who is sensitive, well informed, capable, knowledgeable and interested in sexuality. He should also feel free to admit his ignorance where it exists, and should not be afraid to refer you to another specialist if it’s in your best interest. Finding a doctor like this is about as likely as finding an empty cab in a rainstorm, right? Wrong. There are real pros out there to help you. And it is your right to be treated by the best of them. You don’t have to settle for someone who doesn’t meet your standards. In the long run, your time and effort will pay off in sexual success. After all, 90 percent of men with potency problems can be successfully treated. You might as well take advantage of these odds by getting help from the best.
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The fact that erection is crucial to many men is supported by interviews with the wives and girlfriends of some men with potency problems. Many of these women are very specific about their partners’ changes in behavior and attitude. Typically, they found their husbands became depressed and very pessimistic when they couldn’t get or keep an erection. Some say this negative attitude extended to work and even to such things as trying out new restaurants. Sometimes, out of desperation, a man would tell his wife to get a boyfriend. And sometimes just the opposite happened. Some men became extremely jealous when their wives had innocent social contact with other men, even though such extreme possessiveness had never before been a problem in the relationship. It was very common for the man to withdraw, physically and emotionally. And some women report—with pain—that their man rejected them point-blank when they tried to hug, kiss or just touch him.
This behavior is an unnecessary tragedy. A man who sees his self-worth measured in his penis is selling himself short. He’s setting himself up for emotional trouble, because the odds are that sooner or later his erection will not come up to his expectations. For some this will be a momentary problem; for others it will develop into a chronic condition requiring professional treatment.
Not all men, of course, fall victim to such a restricted self-image that ties their penis to their self-worth. One man explains that he saw his erection problems as just another difficulty to be resolved, and he matter-of-factly compares his implant to the eyeglasses he wears. With this positive attitude, he accomplished his goal with much less anguish than many other men experience.
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It used to be that emotional connections were nurtured before a commitment led the way to marriage and sex. Today, to a large extent, just the opposite is true. Oftentimes, sex is at the starting gate of an encounter, with the possibility of an emotional connection growing from it. But there is an entire other world of intimacy, one that requires attention and nurturing. Doing so will provide the foundation for a stronger connection. Grounded in mutual affection and respect, it can then grow into a fully developed relationship.
Building—and maintaining—a long-lasting, satisfying partnership demands a commitment of time. But no matter how a relationship progresses, sex is a subject that a couple will have to return to over and over again. As part of the foundation of a solid bond between two people, it can function magnificently, bringing increased joy to and trust between the couple. As the sole pillar of a faltering marriage, it can be a weak link, at best. In between these two standards is an entire universe of experiences, unique to each couple.
With a new drug intervention at hand supplying the power to alter sexual compatibility, it’s time to look at how men and women are reacting to this development. To a large extent, they are at a psychological crossroads in their lives.
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