Multiple chemical sensitivity: and

Focuses on recognition, prevention and research of multiple chemical sensitivities and carbon monoxide disorders. Provides professional outreach resources, patient support resources and information on MCS evaluation, accommodation, treatment and research. Copies of published literature available for library processing fee. Request selected bibliography. 

MCS stands for multiple chemical sensitivity and is also known as CS (chemical sensitivity), Cl (chemical injury), El (environmental illness), TILT (toxicant-induced loss of tolerance), twentieth-century illness and IEI (idiopathic environmental intolerance). MCS is the most common term for this condition, and is used around the world. 

MCS is a sensitivity to chemical substances. After all, this disease is named multiple chemical sensitivity and not multiple scent sensitivity. A person can... 

I didn t put any of this together until a friend came over and told me my gas stove made her sick. She said she was chemically sensitive. Her symptoms sounded so much like mine that I went to her doctor, a clinical ecologist. Test results showed I had abnormal levels of chemical substances in my blood. Somehow these chemicals got inside me and were now affecting my immune system. That s when I was told I had Multiple Chemical Sensitivity and now, like so many others, my lifestyle was to completely change. Thus began my long journey. 

Although Dan had been diagnosed with MCS, this was not reported in his official death certificate. His death is officially the result of a neuromuscular degeneration (a disease that damages the nervous system and muscles). No autopsy was performed, www.ridefor life.com/news/als news/multiple chemical sensitivity and als.html... 

As can be seen from this list of symptoms, many are emblematic of multiple chemical sensitivity and chronic fatigue syndrome. This crossover of symptoms often complicates the diagnosis of FM. Mechanistically, oxidative stress and nitric oxide are believed to play a role in FM pathophysiology however, it is not clear at this time whether the oxidative stress abnormalities found in FM are the cause or the effect J46 59 ... 

Reid S, Hotopf M, Hull L, et al. Multiple chemical sensitivity and chronic fatigue syndrome in British Gulf War veterans. Am J Epidemiol 2001 153(6) 604-9. 

Brown MM, Jason, LA. Functioning in individuals with chronic fatigue syndrome Increased impairment with co-occurring multiple chemical sensitivity and fibromyalgia. Dyn Med 2007 6(1) 6, www.dynamic-med.com/ content/6/1/6... 

The debate over the association of formaldehyde with health complaints overlapped the controversies over multiple chemical sensitivities and sick building syndrome. 

Fiedler N, Kipen HM, Deluca J, et al A controlled comparison of multiple chemical sensitivities and chronic fatigue syndrome. Psychosom Med 58 38-49, 1996 Giardino ND, Lehrere PM Behavioral conditioning and idiopathic environmental intolerance. Occup Med 15 519-528, 2000... 

What has become an even greater concern in recent years is the phenomenon known as multiple chemical sensitivity disorder triggered by exposures to many chemicals in the environment. Synthetic chemicals are all around us. They are in the products we use, in the clothes we wear, in the food we eat, in the air we breathe at work. Because chemicals are everywhere in the environment, it is not possible to escape exposure. For this reason many people have become sensitized to the chemicals around them. In fact, it is estimated that 15% of the population has become sensitized to common household and commercial products. For some people the sensitization is not too serious a problem. They may have what appears to be a minor allergy to one or more chemicals. Other people are much more seriously affected. They may feel tired all the time, and suffer from mental confusion, breathing problems, sore muscles, and a weakened immune system. Such people suffer from a condition known as Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS). 

A small percentage of the population may be sensitive to a number of chemicals in indoor air, each of which may occur at very low concentrations. The existence of this condition, which is known as multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS), is a matter of considerable controversy. MCS is not currently recognized by the major medical organizations. Medical opinion is divided, and further research is needed. The applicability of access for the disabled and worker s compensation regulations to... 

In addition to the proteins discussed above, a large number of reactive chemicals used in industry can cause asthma and rhinitis. Hypersensitivity pneumonias have also been described. Isocyanates and acid anhydrides are industrial chemicals that cause occupational asthma. Acid anhydrides, such as phthalic anhydride, seem to cause mainly type I reactions, whereas the IgE-mediated mechanism explains only a part of the sensitizations to isocyanates. Several mechanisms have been suggested, but despite intensive research no models have been generally accepted. The situation is even more obscure for other sensitizing chemicals therefore, the term specific chemical hypersensitivity is often used for chemical allergies. This term should not be confused with multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) syndrome, which is a controversial term referring to hypersusceptibility to very low levels of environmental chemicals. ... 

Multiple chemical sensitivity involves coping with multiple losses. The loss of a safe home is one of the most devastating. Some other common losses touched upon in this collection of stories are selfesteem, relationships, mobility, careers, hobbies, access to public places and community events, transportation, tolerance to foods, and worship services. What I have tried to capture are the strength and grace that come from enduring and mourning these deep losses, and coming out the other side. 

What do I do with my anger Be active on behalf of people with environmentally related illnesses, such as multiple chemical sensitivities. I wrote my book for that reason. My book is the single most important thing I have accomplished in my entire life. I wrote it to try to validate the illness for people who know they have it, and to warn the people who don t know they have it. I wrote it to help people. 

I see signs that there is more acceptance. There are more books out. In our church, the son of a friend in our support group won, in an auction, the chance to pick the subject for a sermon, and he picked multiple chemical sensitivities. The minister gave the sermon, and a committee was established to make the church more accessible to people with MCS. Now I can get a Fragrance Free sign to hang on the back row when I attend. 

When I was first injured not many doctors had ever heard of this illness. Those who knew me before I was injured believed me because they knew me and knew my credibility. Now my colleagues are inviting me to speak on multiple chemical sensitivity. I spoke to a group of one hundred doctors at the hospital. I was so sick that I had to read the entire presentation, but it was well received. Since then I have received many invitations to speak to health care professionals all over. Now when I ask a roomful of doctors how many have heard of MCS, everyone in the room raises their hand. 

Chronic illness affects everyone in relationship with the person who is ill, particularly those who live together. Multiple chemical sensitivity affects other members of the household more profoundly, perhaps, than any other illness because of the many accommodations required. Many relationships don t survive stressors of this magnitude. In light of this, it seemed important to include in this book a narrative on coping from the viewpoint of a healthy person who loves and lives with someone who has MCS. 

Steve Kroll-Smitb studies people affected by dangerous or extreme environments. More specifically, he s interested in how people cope when, due to lack of information and support, they are left to their own devices to understand and respond to environmental crises. He has studied people who live in Super Fund communities residents of Centralia, Pennsylvania, a town where a mine fire raged underground and people with multiple chemical sensitivities. 

A part of the following overview is adapted from the booklet, Multiple Chemical Sensitivity.1 For in-depth information on the physical and medical aspects of MCS and theories of causation, please refer to books recommended in Appendix C and Appendix D. 

Scientists acknowledge that many substances contain chemicals known to be toxic in high concentrations. To chemically sensitive people, these and other substances can be harmful even in minute amounts. A whiff of hair spray, fresh paint or bug spray, for example, can be debilitating to a person with multiple chemical sensitivities. People with MCS must avoid chemical exposures or symptoms will persist or worsen and the illness will progress. 

It is likely that some or all of these mechanisms are involved in chemical sensitivity, and that disease occurs when the total load of biological, chemical, physical and psychological stressors exceeds a critical threshold for any particular individual. When the body is burdened by multiple stressors, susceptibility to MCS as well as other diseases is increased. It is not uncommon for trauma to precede or exacerbate this illness. 

By sending a self-addressed stamped envelope to this organization you will receive information for ordering a video tape, Multiple Chemical Sensitivity How Chemical Exposures May Be Affecting Your Health, featuring interviews with people who have MCS and... 

Allergic to the Twentieth Century The Explosion in Environmental Allergies—From Sick Buildings to Multiple Chemical Sensitivity. Peter Radetsky. Boston Little, Brown, 1997. Provides an overview of the sufferers, skeptics and scientists engaged in the movement toward awareness of MCS and Gulf War illness. 

Multiple Chemical Sensitivity A Survival Guide. Pamela Reed Gibson. Oakland, CA New Harbinger Publications, 1999. Features survival tools for coping with many aspects of MCS coping with the life impact of a chronic illness and with the unique aspects of MCS the need for social support, medical intervention and environmental controls self-help options identity and psychological issues applying for disability benefits and much more. 

Multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) is characterized by a variety of adverse effects upon multiple organs that result from exposure to levels of common foods, drugs, and chemicals that do not affect most people. Symptoms include headaches, fatigue, lack of concentration, memory loss, asthma, and other often subjective responses following exposure. MCS has remained controversial because standard medical evaluations, such as blood biochemical screens, have failed to identify consistent physical or laboratory test abnormalities that would account for the symptoms. 

Hypothetical or potenhal causalities include postulated causalities which have not yet been proven to be related to IAQ. An example is multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS). Often effects or exposures cannot be quantified, not even by indicators. Toxicological evaluations can only deal with effects and exposures which are quantifiable. Therefore, these undocumented causalities must be defined as hypothetical or potential causalities. Even if some of these effects may be considered adverse or have high prevalence, the present level of knowledge prohibits an official rational preventive action and no official guidelines or recommendations can be established. It should be noted that all new types of IAQ problems start as hypothetical. This group includes many health effects which are potentially important to human health and thus defines the research forefront in IAQ sciences. Table 14.2 shows some examples. Several potential or hypothetical causalities are discussed in the scientific literature. Their relevance to health indoors is unknown and no official recommendations or guidance can be established. Mitigation of indoor climate problems becomes a matter of ad hoc solutions and a major... 

The information in this book is provided for educational purposes only. It is not intended as a substitute for medical treatment. The procedures, ideas and therapies described in the book should be discussed with a medical professional. The listing of specific products or methods does not constitute an endorsement of those products or methods. Because multiple chemical sensitivity varies considerably among individuals, it is each person s responsibility to make his or her own choices based upon personal research, testing of all materials, and professional medical advice. 

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