Dr Rosemary

MEDICAL ADVICE COLUMNIST OF THE YEAR

had their leg lengths measured accurately but I’m aware that the left leg of my trousers always seems slightly shorter than the right.

Once a disparity is discovered, it can be easy to use it as a reason for aches and pains, particularly back, hip and knee problems, but in reality a difference of around 1cm is unlikely to be the basic underlying cause, although it could make an existing problem more troublesome.

Special orthotic insoles which you can insert into your shoes to lift your shorter leg can help.

Also a physiotherapist should be able to give you exercises to strengthen muscles around your knees and back exercises to help correct any lopsidedness in the way you walk.

IS it possible to unclog your arteries?

UNFORTUNATELY, once your arteries are narrowed by fatty deposits, it is very difficult to widen them again. Unlike water pipes that can be descaled, it’s just not possible to remove fatty deposits from blood vessels as this would involve damaging the vessel wall.

Inserting tiny metal stents can help keep blood flowing where a small portion of an important artery is dangerously narrowed, for example, in the coronary arteries that supply the heart or in one of the main blood vessels supplying the legs.

But when a longer section of an artery is narrowed, the only way of improving the blood supply is with a bypass operation.

Once arteries are narrowed, the best approach is to prevent the problem getting any worse. This means not smoking, keeping blood pressure to a normal level, keeping blood cholesterol levels down (which nearly always means taking statins), eating a very healthy diet, taking regular exercise, and losing any excess weight.

For people who have diabetes,