From: "Leanne Williams" <[log in to unmask]>

> I am intolerant to milk and get joint pain in my knees.  The pain shoots up
> the bottom half of my leg.  I also get fatigue and bloat.  My doctor was
> worthl;ess as it took me 4 years to get diagnosed with allergies to citrus,
> caffeine and an intolerance to milk.  I feel that more information should be
> available on the subject, as my doctor told me it was all in the mind and to
> leave him alone.

It seems that there are too many doctors who don't take their patients' complaints seriously.
This is a serious concern, as failure to correctly diagnose a problem can have long-term (and sometimes permanent) adverse effects.

For example, when our daughter was an infant, she would get a rash over her body after almost every feeding.  The "doctors" that we
consulted with came up with various explanations (hormones in the mother's milk, etc.) but the final recommendation was always the
same: don't worry, do nothing, it will pass.
If even one would have suggested that
(a) she might have had allergic reactions and
(b) that certain allergens in the mother's diet can pass into her milk
we would have eliminated the offending products from mom's diet (by trial and error or otherwise) and she might have outgrown her
allergies.  As it is, at the age of 5, she shows no signs of outgrowing them (goes symptom-free for, say, 8 months, then touches
something that was previously handled by some kid who just had a pizza and here-we-go-again...)

(and won't even voice my opinion on the nurses at the hospital where she was born who ignored our EXPLICIT instructions not to give
her ANY formula).

Maybe we should create a web site to share our experiences with various doctors.

Something like:
    Doctor's name
    Doctor's specialization (family, paediatrician, allergist, etc.)
    Location (country/state/city/whatever)
    Recommendation (Yes/No) and Comments

(People from overly litigious societies can avoid libel suits by keeping negative comments factual and neutral, like: "ruled out the
possibility of allergy/intolerance" or even "did not help my condition").

Something like that could help a lot of people.