Multiple Chemical Sensitivity

The ailment known as Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) is a controversial illness which is said to affect, in some way, between 2% and 10% of people. The most commonly affected people are from the ages of 30 to 50, and more women than men claim to have MCS. The USEPA says that about 1/3 of all people who work in a sealed building are affected and have symptoms of this ailment. MCS also has been referred to as environmental hypersensitivity, idiopathic environmental intolerance, sick building syndrome and environmental illness. There are almost endless symptoms for MCS, and it is arguably the only illness which the patient must both identify the cause and the symptoms of the condition. The symptoms of MCS generally fall in one or all of three categories: central nervous system symptoms, respiratory and mucosal irritation, or gastrointestinal problems. That means that a symptom can be anything from a headache, irritability, nasal congestion, or a sore throat to changes in heart rhythm, breathing problems and memory loss. With such a wide range of possible symptoms, it is almost impossible for medical professionals to diagnose Multiple Chemical Sensitivity.

Currently some of the leading medical institutes, such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, do not consider MCS to be a physical disorder. The lack of adequate research done on MCS is one of the reasons which it is not recognized. Also, unlike an allergic reaction, people with MCS do not develop antibodies, or any traceable immune response, to their chemical irritants. This makes medically pinpointing a cause extremely difficult. According to the Cleveland Clinic, patients with MCS have a high rate of mental disorder, more specifically depression, anxiety and somatoform disorders (a mental illness that causes physical symptoms). It is said that 50% of all people with MCS also fit the standards for depression and anxiety. It is currently unknown whether this relationship is causational.

In 1997, a study completed by the National Center for Biotechnology Information, part of the National Institute of Health, was done which had successful outcomes to reduce the symptoms of MCS. The treatment was done using psychological desensitization and Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRI). Though this study treated symptoms of MCS, it appears to only have treated the mental component of MCS, reducing the anxiety of chemical exposure. Other treatments which are used for MCS are chemical avoidance, nutrient therapy, sauna therapy and detoxification. Chemical avoidance is simply eliminating exposure to chemicals which prove to cause negative reactions. Chemical avoidance is the most effective treatment for MCS. It includes chemical free households as well as chemical free alternatives to daily necessities. Nutrient therapy is based around the concept that people with MCS often do not absorb the needed nutrients, causing certain symptoms. Nutrient therapy allows replacement of needed nutrients as well as decreasing the amount of nitric oxide in the body. Sauna therapy and detoxification aims at reducing heavy metals and other chemicals stored in fat cells. This may be done by way of sauna, sweating out toxins, or chelating therapy.

Because of the same reasons which MCS is not considered a physical disorder, it is extremely to measure the outcomes of treatments for Multiple Chemical Sensitivity. The only way, at the moment, to relieve symptoms of MCS is chemical avoidance. Even though other treatments may have successful outcomes for some, it is not guaranteed to work for every case of MCS.

People who suffer from MCS are like "Canaries in a mine". 

 They can sense chemicals in very small, usually unnoticeable, doses.

http://mcs-america.org/index_files/mcsmedicaltreatment.htm

http://www.psychosomaticsjournal.com/article/S0033-3182(98)71289-7/abstract

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23947742

https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/multiplechemicalsensitivities/

http://my.clevelandclinic.org/disorders/multiple_chemical_sensitivity/hic_multiple_chemical_sensitivity_fact_or_fiction.aspx