Allergies: All About Multiple Chemical Sensitivity

What is Multiple Chemical Sensitivity?

Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) is an usually severe sensitivity or allergy-like reaction to many different kinds of pollutants including solvents, VOCs, perfumes, petrol, diesel, smoke and chemicals in general. MCS can also refer to problems involving common household allergens such as pollen, house dust mites, pet fur and dander.

What Are the Symptoms?

Common symptoms include burning, stinging eyes, wheezing, breathlessness, nausea, extreme fatigue/lethargy, headache/migraine/vertigo/dizziness, poor memory and concentration, runny nose (rhinitis), sore throat, cough, sinus problems, skin rashes/itchy skin, sensitivity to light and noise, sleeping problems, digestive upset and muscle/joint pain.

What Causes MCS?

MCS is commonly regarded as an idiopathic disorder. This means it has no known mechanism of causation and its processes are not completely understood. The unknown factors of MCS along with the fact that its sufferers experience varied symptoms and severities make it very hard to treat.

What Can Be Done for MCS Sufferers?

There are four basic treatments for multiple chemical sensitivity. They include:

Chemical Avoidance: Eliminating exposure to the chemicals that cause negative reactions is scientifically proven to be the most effective treatment for MCS. Sufferers can tell their employers about the situation, ask others to avoid smoke and wearing perfume in their presence, avoid working near common sources of pollution including photocopiers, faxes and printers and open windows when at all possible to ensure fresh air.

Chemical Free Housing: Household cleaners, fragrances, petrochemicals, solvents and VOCs found in building materials and furnishing make indoor environments more polluted than outdoor environments. Making sure your home is chemical-free is an important part of symptom reduction/

Nutrient Therapy: Many MCS sufferers have noticed that increasing the levels of certain nutrients, such as antioxidants, reduces their symptom severity.

Sauna Therapy and Detoxification: The environmental chemicals stored in fat cells are eliminated when the body is heated by a sauna. The chemicals are mobilized from the fat stores by the heat and released via sweat.