Dear Dr. SerVaas: Not having access to a Web site (my computer is too old), this old dragon does her own research.Many skiing injuries, falling off the third-floor fire escape in boarding school, etc., have finally caught up with me in the form of prickling, some numbness in toes and pad of both feet.

A book written by Stuart M. Berger, M.D., How To Be Your Own Nutritionist, recommends 100 mg B1. That is what I take, and it has helped immensely. My doctor was completely disinterested in the problem, and B1 was okay by him.

Your magazine feedback is fantastic--the only one I subscribe to. Keep those toes wiggling…

Jacquellyn Cameron
Camarillo, California

Dear Reader: Vitamin B1 is thiamine. The oral dose you are taking appears safe. In the body, thiamine helps maintain the nervous system, muscles, and heart. Thiamine-rich food sources include kidney, liver, brewer's yeast, beans, pork, salmon, soybeans, and wheat germ.

Dear Dr. SerVaas: I am writing in regard to the letter in the Sept./Oct. '04 issue of the Post, from Marie Stevens of Peoria, Arizona, inquiring about peripheral neuropathy. Just early this year, the bottom of my feet started burning. I have discovered that before bedtime, soaking them in a pan of cold water with ¼ to ½ cup of apple cider vinegar stops the burning, and I can get a good night's sleep.

In owning a skating rink, I skated every day for 20 years, so maybe that is where my problem began.

Marian King
Calhoun, Georgia