Multiple Chemical Sensitivity

One Reason for the Allergy Explosion and the Increase in Asthma

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(written by Dr. Albert Robbins, Jacki's Environmental Physician, in response to Governor Bush's Proclamation (see bottom of page) declaring May 7-13, 2000 "Multiple Chemical Sensitivity Awareness Week" in the State of Florida – used by permission)

What is most sad… about the allergy explosion and the rise in asthma in modern nations… is that allergic individuals are not properly warned about personal exposures that aggravate the allergies and that are generally "masked" or not suspected: The patient doesn't know that his/her personal care products are affecting him/her until he/she unmasks or avoids these exposures.

Remember that these allergic individuals are "hypersensitive," which means that they are reactive to a far lower level of air pollutant exposure than the general population. They are not aware that their own personal care products increase their reactivity.

Neighborhood Health Notice

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Fabric Softeners and Scented Detergents Cause Illness and Pollution

What's Wrong With Fabric Softeners?

People are discovering that fabric softeners are some of the most toxic products made for daily household use. They contain chemicals (like chloroform, benzyl acetate and pentane) that are known to cause cancer and/or damage to lungs, brain, and nerves. These chemicals are even more dangerous when heated in clothes dryers. The toxic fumes then go into neighborhood air and everyone for blocks around is forced to breathe them in.

Fabric softener chemicals are made to stay in clothes fibers and slowly release for a very long time. That slow release of chemicals into the air affects the health of those wearing the clothes and of people around them. Many people take steps to becoming more healthy in their daily lives. They don't realize though that huge health risks are right under their noses. Among many poisonous ingredients in perfumes and cleaning products, fabric softeners are no stranger to these harmful chemicals either.

Detox Baths

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To Help Detox From Chemical Exposures

General Information:

You may experience flu-like symptoms during detoxification because your body is ridding itself of poisons. You can get some relief from these symptoms by taking baths using epsom salts (1 to 2 cups) and baking soda (1 cup) in a tub of water and soaking for 20 minutes (soaking for more than 20 minutes may cause you to get too exhausted). On off days you can put 1 cup of apple cider vinegar in the tub and soak.

Skin brushing can be very beneficial, because the skin is a primary avenue for detoxification—along with the lungs, kidneys, liver, and colon. You need to brush all parts of the body toward the heart. Then follow with a sesame oil massage. Massaging with sesame oil brings relief. This oil can be purchased from Amazon: Banyan Botanicals Sesame Oil, Certified Organic – The Most Traditional of All Oils Used in Ayurveda, Good for Vata and Kapha. Massage the whole body for 5 minutes before bathing or showering. Below is a good skin brush:

Protect Yourself From Household Toxics

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Please… protect yourself from household toxics!
– says author Debra Lynn Dadd

The following excerpts from this pamphlet are used by permission of RM Barry Publications. See below for ordering information to obtain the complete printed version of this pamphlet.

The idea that the home can be a healthy or unhealthy environment is relatively recent. Terms such as "household toxics" and "indoor air pollution" have been coined only within the past few years as the medical and scientific communities have begun recognizing that common household chemicals can have an adverse effect on our health.

Like most people, I always assumed that if a product was on the market, it must be safe.

Until I created a new lifestyle for myself that replaced toxic products with more natural ones, I never knew what it was like to feel well.

Tourette Syndrome

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Tourette Syndrome – The Environmental/Allergy Connection

– written by Albert E. Robbins, D.O., M.S.P.H. (used by permission)

Answers to Commonly Asked Questions

Is there an environmental or allergic connection to Tourette syndrome (TS)?

Yes. Many individuals have found that proper evaluation and treatment of underlying allergic disease, along with dietary and environmental controls (lifestyle changes) gave significant and sometimes profound relief of TS symptoms.

MCS Resources

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Safer Products – Online and Mail-Order Catalogs

(NOTE: Purchasing through any of the banners on this web site—including the Amazon banner at the bottom of each page, as well as any of the ads down the right sidebar—will provide us a small referral fee to help support the costs of keeping this web site up and running! Thank you!

Disclaimer: To the best of our knowledge, the products and companies listed on this page offer nontoxic and/or less-toxic alternatives. However, we have no affiliation with these companies, nor can we guarantee their safety for each individual with MCS! Please research each product you choose to use by reading the labels (and obtaining samples if possible) to be sure they contain no ingredients that you personally react to!

Advanced Foil Systems, Inc. – a supplier of non-toxic barriers (Aluma-Foil™) used to prevent offgassing of building materials. Lightweight and easy to use. 1-800-421-5947; 820 S. Rockefeller Ave., Suite. A, Ontario, California 91761.

Allergy Asthma Technology, Ltd. – dedicated to helping to reduce exposures to allergens as simply and effectively as possible.

Julia Kendall Memorial Page

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…In Loving Memory

Marin political organizer and anti-pesticide advocate, Julia Kendall, passed away on July 12, 1997 of complications from leukemia.

She came to Marin in 1971 from Texas and Louisiana, where she was active in the Republican Party and was honored in 1963 as the Outstanding Young Republican Woman in the Nation. Inspired by Robert Kennedy she became a Democrat in the late sixties. She was a member of the California Democratic Central Committee in 1984, and an active member of the Hazardous Waste Sub-committee of the California State Air Resources Board.

She worked for many liberal causes in Marin, including the Rainbow Coalition, the Nuclear Free Zone campaigns and Central American refugee sponsorship programs. As a resident of San Anselmo, she led a successful drive to save the Robson-Harrington estate from development, which resulted in its becoming a popular park and conference center.

Injured by the pesticide, malathion, during the 1990 Medfly eradication program, she refocused her activism on the effects of toxic chemicals on human health. She was the chair of Citizens for a Toxic Free Marin and one of the founders of the Chemical Injury Litigation Project. She was committed to combining litigation and publicity to change public policy on issues that affect health and the environment.

Second Hand Reactions

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Archives of newspaper column written by Gloria Gilbere in order to educate the public about the experiences, challenges, solutions, etc., of people living with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity Syndrome/ Environmental Illness.

Gloria Gilbere N.D., D.A.Hom., Ph.D., is an internationally respected expert in EcoErgonomics, environmental illness consultant, natural health practitioner, research writer, advocate for toxic-free living and the chemically injured. She is the author of I was Poisoned by my Body! and Invisible Illnesses. Dr. Gilbere is Director of The Naturopathic Health and Research Center, Bonners Ferry, ID.

Articles

Article 1 – Allergic Reactions and Chemical Sensitivity – Kootenai Valley Times – July 27, 2000

Article 3 – Teacher Forced out of Class (Permanently) by Pesticide Use – Kootenai Valley Times – August 10, 2000

Article 4 – Wick-ed Candles – They "Light up Your Life"—and Endanger Your Children – Kootenai Valley Times – August 17, 2000

Allergic Reactions and Chemical Sensitivity

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Article 1: Allergic Reactions and Chemical Sensitivity

Kootenai Valley Times – July 27, 2000

– by Dr. Gloria Gilbere

Allergic reactions are as diverse as the person themselves; however, more and more people are developing severe allergies as a result of living in a toxic world. These allergies are known as chemically induced immune system disorders, and a fast spreading phenomenon associated with chemical hypersensitivity. Research by the California Dept. of Health estimates that up to 34% of Americans report symptoms of chemical sensitivity. Of this number up to 80% also have chronic fatigue syndrome; 65% have fibromyalgia, and over 85% have digestive and immune disorders.