After many years of confusion, I have been diagnosed with trimethylaminuria. It is an awful disease that has caused much emotional pain in my life. I was hoping that if the disease was discussed on your site that people's awareness may increase and perhaps people would not be quite so quick to judge others. I would appreciate it if you could post my message for this reason. Also, if the disease is caused by the lack of a certain hormone in my body, then would an injection of this hormone be a possible solution? In all of my research, I have not seen this discussed.

Dear Alice,

I am seeing a guy I love and we are both thinking of consummating our relationship soon. We are both adults and this will be the first time for both of us. This is great, but also a bit scary in terms of the necessary protection.

How can having multiple sex partners be a risk factor for cervical cancer? What is the difference between having sex with one man one thousand times and sex with one thousand men (not that I'm planning to!) one time?

I was hoping you could answer a question for me about birth control pills. There is a history of breast cancer in my family (my mother). Is it true that because of this, it is unsafe for me to use birth control pills? A few friends have recently had condoms break during sex, and I am looking for a type of "backup" contraception system.

I heard that eliminating or reducing red meat from your diet can help get rid of allergies. Is this true? Or just a rumor?

Does a virgin need to have a Pap smear? Is cervical cancer the only disease a Pap smear detects? What are the means of contracting cervical cancer and any other possible diseases detected by the Pap smear?