Multiple Chemical Sensitivity -- Severe Chronic Inflammation

Multiple Chemical Sensitivity is a cryptic disease that may be multiple individualized manifestations of severe chronic inflammation. Sufferers respond to anti-inflammatory treatments.

A disease by any other name is still inflammatory. Wikipedia:
“MCS has also been termed toxic injury (TI), chemical sensitivity (CS), chemical injury syndrome (CI),[3] 20th Century Syndrome, environmental illness (EI), sick building syndrome, idiopathic environmental intolerance (IEI), and toxicant-induced loss of tolerance (TILT).”

All of these different names attest to the numerous symptoms and clinical presentations of this syndrome, i.e. multiple symptoms for the same cause. Since I see inflammation and heparin as integral to most diseases, it will come as no surprise that I looked for inflammation as the basis for MCS. A search of the biomedical literature brought me to work by Martin Pall at the School of Molecular Biosciences at WSU. Since he lives just north of me and I think of myself as a molecular bioscientist, I was receptive to his ideas, the nitric oxide/peroxynitirite theory.

The nitiric oxide/peroxynitirite theory basically says that numerous types of chemical injuries can give rise to an inflammatory response that generates both nitric oxide and reactive oxygen species (ROS), which in combination produce peroxynitrite. The peroxynitrite causes oxidation damage to mitochondria, which causes release of more ROS and depletion of ATP. Depletion of ATP in neurons of the brain, particularly in the hippocampus can result in increased sensitivity to chemicals. All of these components can produce cycles of nitric oxide/peroxynitirite production and the maintenance of a high level of chronic inflammation. This mechanism for the cause and maintenance of MCS also provides suggestions about treatment.

Important insights from Dr. Pall’s web site are that MCS, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia and post traumatic shock all share related symptoms, underlying biochemistry and treatment. A major feature of the treatment is the use of dietary supplements, e.g. turmeric (curcumin), vitamin C, omega-3 fatty acids, that are anti-inflammatory. A potential mistake in therapy for a syndrome with so many triggering chemicals is to simplify the diet to just starch and protein, in an attempt to avoid triggering plant chemicals. Too much starch or any other diet that causes steep increases in blood sugar are inflammatory and pose potential problems. Small meals and exercise may be helpful.

It is not surprising that numerous dietary and environmental compounds may cause extreme symptoms when such a high level of inflammation is present. This high level of inflammation will suppress immunological tolerance, so that all molecules in the environment become potential allergens. A peculiarity of this disease, is that the allergies should keep changing, because the population of antibody-producing lymphocytes for any allergen are eliminated by constant attrition as they are displaced by lymphocytes responding to new allergens. It also seems unusual that autoimmune diseases are not commonly associated with MCS. It would appear that the high inflammatory nature of the disease is inhibiting the apoptosis that produces the cellular antigens needed for autoimmunity.

Dietary treatment of MCS should be very successful with the caveat that very high levels of anti-inflammatory materials, e.g. omega-3 oils, vitamin C, glucosamine, may be needed, because of very high rates of consumption. Normally 1000 milligrams (one gram) of vitamin C might be effective, but with MCS, the level might be very much higher. One of the unusual feature of MCS may be the depletion of all plant antioxidants in a very simplified diet. Since normal body performance may be based on small amounts of ubiquitous plant compounds, the consequences of complete depletion may be similar to unpredicted vitamin deficiencies.

Gut flora have not been discussed in MCS. It is expected that the unusual diets of MCS sufferers may lead to very peculiar gut flora that may reinforce the symptoms of the disease. Normalization of the diet and gut flora may be very important in reducing the symptoms of the disease.