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Dear Dr. Roach: Please explain the difference between probiotics and prebiotics. I know they are both helpful for the digestive system, but I鈥檓 not sure why. A.B.

Dear Dr. Roach: My husband suffers from trigeminal neuralgia. This is often very painful for months at a time, then the pain will stop for a few months before it begins again. He does not want to begin taking an anti-seizure medication.

Dear Dr. Roach: I am an 86-year-old woman, and my sister is 91. We are both in good health, with normal health issues for people our age. My question is that we both have contracts with crematory companies, but we also intend to be organ donors.

Dear Dr. Roach: I read your recent column regarding asymptomatic atrial fibrillation.

Dear Dr. Roach: Three years ago, I turned 60 and received my first dose of Shingrix. I had a highly unpleasant reaction, with fever and flulike symptoms.

Dear Dr. Roach: I have COPD, and my doctor explains that the trouble is that my lungs do not expel the full amount of the breath I take in. This prevents the full oxygen intake from my breath.

Dear Dr. Roach: How is preventive medical care handled when an individual is traveling to a remote location? For example, I will be hiking this summer in a remote area with no medical care available (it would take three days to get to a doctor).

Dear Dr. Roach: I am a 77-year-old woman. I have had problems with insomnia for at least 50 years, but it is much worse now. Some nights I don鈥檛 sleep, and some nights I get maybe three or four hours.

Dear Dr. Roach: I am interested in your perspective on intermittent fasting. I am in a walking group of seniors (all 65+ years). Six of us have been on this diet for six to eight weeks, and everyone has consistently lost a pound a week.

Dear Dr. Roach: Please help me understand the connection between the use of baby powder or talcum powder and ovarian cancer. I can鈥檛 grasp how a product that is applied externally can migrate to the ovaries and cause cancer. K.M.