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DEAR DR. GOTT: My 34-year old son is an alcoholic and drug addict. He buys narcotic pain re lievers on the street, has forged prescriptions and hits up many doctors for whatever he can get. He also has severe heart disease and has been hospitalized on sev eral occasions for congestive heart failure. My dilemma is this: Should I tell his physicians about his addictive behavior? DEAR READER: By all means. His doctors, who may or may not be aware of his problem, need to know about his drinking and use of narcotics so that they can pro vide optimal care for him. Other wise, they lack important infor mation. I would start with your son's primary care physician and, with the doctor's approval, branch out as necessary. To keep this important observation a se cret is literally to sign a death certificate for your son, a respon sibility that no loving parent should have to bear. DEAR DR. GOTT: I am enclos ing an article I got off the Inter net about tampons that contain asbestos, dioxin and rayon. The author concludes that such com pounds can lead to significant health consequences. Is this for real? DEAR READER: I don't know Even if the allegation were true, I fail to see how it could affect women’s health. Asbestos is only dangerous when inhaled. Dioxin can be harmful only in high con centrations. People have worn rayon and nylon garments for more than 50 years without demonstrable consequences Frankly, I’m suspicious about the validity of information on the Internet. Certainly, this is a rich source of interesting mate rial posted by qualified profes sionals. But it is also a rich source of garbage, misleading opinions by the disenfranchised and wacky stuff that any normal person ought to ignore. I assume perhaps incorrectly — that some governmental watchdog, cancer scientist or gynecological society would have raised the is sue of tampon contamination, if it is an issue, long ago. Be skeptical of all information (except what you read in my col umn!), especially stuff on the In ternet. DEAR DR. GOTT: My 7-year-old granddaughter weighs 90 pounds. Her obesity is not caused by dietary indiscretions. She eats modest, sensible portions, avoids junk food, rarely consumes sugar and snacks on fruit and vegeta bles. Could this be a medical con dition? Her parents have no health insurance and don’t know where to turn. DEAR READER: Your grand daughter could very well have a metabolic disorder that should be addressed.Even if she is a “clos et eater” and consumes high-calo rie foods surreptitiously, that could be addressed as well.) In my opinion, she should be examined by a pediatrician. The price of such an exam would be bearable and, in my experience, most pediatricians are very “community-conscious” and would adjust their fees if insur ance is lacking or if state medical aid is not available. Start in the pediatrician’s office; then, if fur ther testing is necessary, you can cross that bridge later. Send your questions to Dr. Gott in care of The Newport Daily News, 200 Madison Ave., Fourth Floor, New York, NY 10016. About Medicine Dr. Peter Gott
Newspaper Details
Newport Daily News
Newport, Rhode Island, US
Sat, Nov 23, 2002
Page 35
Full Page
Clipped by
Patricia O.
USA 16 Jun 2026
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