When I was little, I was allergic to dust and smoke. I would start wheezing when my dad would smoke his pipe and I told him to quit! My doctor finally gave me an asthma inhaler which I would use whenever the wheezing would start up.
Now that I am older, I suspect I've got
Multiple Chemical Sensitivity."What CAN be said about defining Multiple Chemical Sensitivity - and in order to help the patient decide whether they truly have MCS or another allergy-related illness - is that the following deciding criteria apply to Multiple Chemical Sensitivity:
• the patient exhibits problems - often an allergy-like reaction to both large often extremely low levels of irritants/toxicants/triggers : other individuals present at the same time may be unable to detect anything at all or anything unusual or out of the ordinary.
• the problem is ongoing, ie. chronic, and not a "one-off" event.
• the same symptoms are reproducible with repeated exposure to the same triggers.
• the patient is affected by many different triggers.
• the patient improves when triggers are absent."
- From www.multiplechemicalsensitivity.org According to this website, the symptoms of MCS are:
burning, stinging eyes
wheezing, breathlessness nausea
extreme fatigue/lethargy
headache/migraine/vertigo/dizziness
poor memory & concentration
runny nose (rhinitis)
sore throat, cough
sinus problems
skin rashes and/or itching skin
sensitivity to light & noise
sleeping problems
digestive upset
muscle & joint pain
As I've gotten older I've noticed more and more of this. I can't wear perfumes or use air fresheners anymore. Smells will set me off! I already mentioned the MSG and chemicals in food that don't agree with me.
So in my quest for feeling better I've been trying to reduce the chemicals in and around me! First, I found a toothpaste replacement: BAKING SODA! At first it tasted quite horrible to me, but I got used to it! Then someone told me to mix in some sea salt and peppermint oil. Not bad! For better mouth freshening I found a lady who makes toothepaste and other natural products at www.healing-scents.com. Her toothpaste is GREAT. It doesn't scrub as well as the baking soda but it tastes so good and freshens your breath.
For deodorant, I bought one of those crystal mineral deodorants. I use that at night, and then in the morning I use the healing-scents natural deodorant. It works, by George.
Finally I am trying to eliminate the chemicals in all of my other body care. I found some organic soaps and next up will be organic shampoo and mineral make-up. Healing-scents has some of this and other stuff can be found at local health food stores.
I also noticed that I had trouble breathing while cleaning. Of course I was using the name-brand store-bought bathroom cleaners! I found some sites with recipes for making your own less harmful cleaners. I was so surprised how cheap/easy they were to make and how well they worked.
So, the detox is an ongoing process. I do feel 100x better when I use the natural products with essential oils. For Mother's Day I chose a sample pack of 8 different oils and I'm learning what each one does! :)
Now that I am older, I suspect I've got Multiple Chemical Sensitivity.
"What CAN be said about defining Multiple Chemical Sensitivity - and in order to help the patient decide whether they truly have MCS or another allergy-related illness - is that the following deciding criteria apply to Multiple Chemical Sensitivity:
• the patient exhibits problems - often an allergy-like reaction to both large often extremely low levels of irritants/toxicants/triggers : other individuals present at the same time may be unable to detect anything at all or anything unusual or out of the ordinary.
• the problem is ongoing, ie. chronic, and not a "one-off" event.
• the same symptoms are reproducible with repeated exposure to the same triggers.
• the patient is affected by many different triggers.
• the patient improves when triggers are absent."
- From www.multiplechemicalsensitivity.org
According to this website, the symptoms of MCS are:
burning, stinging eyes
wheezing, breathlessness nausea
extreme fatigue/lethargy
headache/migraine/vertigo/dizziness
poor memory & concentration
runny nose (rhinitis)
sore throat, cough
sinus problems
skin rashes and/or itching skin
sensitivity to light & noise
sleeping problems
digestive upset
muscle & joint pain
As I've gotten older I've noticed more and more of this. I can't wear perfumes or use air fresheners anymore. Smells will set me off! I already mentioned the MSG and chemicals in food that don't agree with me.
So in my quest for feeling better I've been trying to reduce the chemicals in and around me! First, I found a toothpaste replacement: BAKING SODA! At first it tasted quite horrible to me, but I got used to it! Then someone told me to mix in some sea salt and peppermint oil. Not bad! For better mouth freshening I found a lady who makes toothepaste and other natural products at www.healing-scents.com. Her toothpaste is GREAT. It doesn't scrub as well as the baking soda but it tastes so good and freshens your breath.
For deodorant, I bought one of those crystal mineral deodorants. I use that at night, and then in the morning I use the healing-scents natural deodorant. It works, by George.
Finally I am trying to eliminate the chemicals in all of my other body care. I found some organic soaps and next up will be organic shampoo and mineral make-up. Healing-scents has some of this and other stuff can be found at local health food stores.
I also noticed that I had trouble breathing while cleaning. Of course I was using the name-brand store-bought bathroom cleaners! I found some sites with recipes for making your own less harmful cleaners. I was so surprised how cheap/easy they were to make and how well they worked.
So, the detox is an ongoing process. I do feel 100x better when I use the natural products with essential oils. For Mother's Day I chose a sample pack of 8 different oils and I'm learning what each one does! :)