|
A study involving
multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) and asthma patients found
that MCS patients suffered from depression and somatization
disorder, in which patients complain of symptoms with no apparent
cause, more often than asthmatics or healthy individuals.
Multiple chemical
sensitivity (MCS) is a syndrome in which symptoms such as
memory loss, fatigue, joint and muscle pain, and depression
occur with exposure to low-level, everyday-type chemicals
(cosmetics, detergents, soaps). Theories including allergy,
toxins, and neurobiologic sensitization have been offered
to explain the cause of MCS, however the diagnosis remains
controversial as there is little evidence to suggest a causal
relationship.
It has been suggested
by researchers that the psychological problems associated
with MCS may be a reaction to, rather than a result of, the
syndrome. Some health care practitioners deny that MCS exists,
others know little about it, which could, in itself, cause
the patient to have anxiety and depression.
Though the study
could not determine whether anxiety and depression were in
fact cased by MCS, findings suggested that treating the psychological
disorders would help physical symptoms to improve as well.
Journal
of Occupational and Environmental Medicine October 2002;44:890-901
| 