Chemical Sensitivities?

[Gerri]

Very chemical sensitive to many chemicals (smoke, paint, purfumes, soaps, cleaning products etc), causes many asthma attacks. Also allergic to sulfa, sulfites, sulfates, and all sulfer derivatives (sp) Unable to have many medications, for pain from arthritis(s), depression, or (NASH - non alcohol fatty liver disease with inflamation.)

Gerri

[mftnchn]

Count me in as another one with chemical sensitivities. I have found that it has been worse at some times in my life. Also there are certain things that will really hit me hard and I have had some scary reactions. One of the worst for me is the mosquito coils commonly used here in Asia.

In terms of the connection with celiac, part of it may be the autoimmune connection so allergies in general may be an issue. Also, the damage in our intestines surely impacts our ability to detoxify from all of the various things we encounter.

So I think that is one place we can help ourselves. Finding the right combo of supplements--to help our systems balance, drinking lots of clean water, and other detox measures might help reduce the stress and toxin load in our systems.

My allergist told me that it takes 4 days for an allergic food to be processed through the system, but 10 days for a chemical to be processed. That means build-up is a real issue. So avoiding chemicals where we can is important. I also learned that using a gas cooking stove is a problem, especially if you use the oven without running the fan or having the windows open.

[holiday16]

Very interesting to see these replys. I found this website about MCS which is worth looking at:

Open Original Shared Link

If you go to the end it talks about the possible link of it being related to the immune system which makes sense as one of the biggest things I noticed related to gluten was the effect it had on my immune system. I love that the site has a picture of the glade plug-ins on the side as that has to be one of the worst products ever!

I also asked my Dr. yesterday if people with FM tend to have chemical sensitivities and he said yes and he also noticed they're more likely to react to meds as well so he always starts them on the lowest dose and is very cautious. I've had issues with that in the past as well. They know FM affects the immune system so that makes sense too. I've been taking something that naturally boosts your level of interferon which helps your immune system and it's made a huge difference in my FM and allergies and it never occurred to me before, but I wonder if that's also why my chemical sensitivities seem to not be as bad as they used to be. I still react, but at least I don't get so dizzy and haven't gotten chest pains in a long time from them.

Here's a really good site to use to look up chemical content of products:

Open Original Shared Link

What I do is look up the ones that bother me the most (click on products an it will give you a list by name) and then at the bottom there is a link you can click on that shows other products that also contain the same ingredient. I was looking at this a few months ago and found that the same thing in Febreeze was also in this one deodorant that I had my dh throw away because it made me so sick. The only thing that is not really clear is the fragrance/perfume link as they don't say what that consists of. I've heard that they can put all kinds of things under that without really disclosing. Not sure if that's true or not.

Paulette

[kayavara]

Very interesting to see these replys. I found this website about MCS which is worth looking at:

Open Original Shared Link

If you go to the end it talks about the possible link of it being related to the immune system which makes sense as one of the biggest things I noticed related to gluten was the effect it had on my immune system. I love that the site has a picture of the glade plug-ins on the side as that has to be one of the worst products ever!

I also asked my Dr. yesterday if people with FM tend to have chemical sensitivities and he said yes and he also noticed they're more likely to react to meds as well so he always starts them on the lowest dose and is very cautious. I've had issues with that in the past as well. They know FM affects the immune system so that makes sense too. I've been taking something that naturally boosts your level of interferon which helps your immune system and it's made a huge difference in my FM and allergies and it never occurred to me before, but I wonder if that's also why my chemical sensitivities seem to not be as bad as they used to be. I still react, but at least I don't get so dizzy and haven't gotten chest pains in a long time from them.

Here's a really good site to use to look up chemical content of products:

Open Original Shared Link

What I do is look up the ones that bother me the most (click on products an it will give you a list by name) and then at the bottom there is a link you can click on that shows other products that also contain the same ingredient. I was looking at this a few months ago and found that the same thing in Febreeze was also in this one deodorant that I had my dh throw away because it made me so sick. The only thing that is not really clear is the fragrance/perfume link as they don't say what that consists of. I've heard that they can put all kinds of things under that without really disclosing. Not sure if that's true or not.

Paulette

Wow....now I get it! My husband calls me the "blood hound" because I can snif out everything before anyone else even realizes it's around. I am affected mostly by cleaners and our natural gas.Our neighbors had a a leak in their line once, and I was the only one who could smell it.I can always pick up on weird scents around me.Some bother me ...some don't.I also have a super sensitive time with medication....I have spent tons of money on prescription meds and otc meds ...only to find they make me sick.I'm so glad to read these posts....I find another little piece of the puzzle everyday.

[Leslie C.]

I just bought a gluten-free hair color (Ecocolor). The instructions mention that you can develop allergies to things after repeated use, so they recommend a skin test before each use. Perhaps that is what has happened to you, and you may need to change brands (??).

[ShayFL]

Those burning candles really get me!!

I do not know when I became so chemically sensitive. My parents were "country people" and they never wore cologne/perfume. They still dont. So I was not exposed to a lot in my home. I got an allergic rash to GAIN detergent when I was young, so my Mom switched to the Dreft or whatever it was that didnt have all the chemicals back then. We used ivory soap.

I know after my pregnancy 12 years ago, I did become more sensitive. My nose can smell chemicals a mile away. Things no one else smells. Or I smell it and then 200 feet later they smell it. It is amazing (and not in a good way).

We just had our kitchen/bath remodeled and one day they guys sprayed a small patch on the wall with aerosol texture medium. I was in my studio on the other side of the house and smelled it. When I get whiffs of stuff like that my brain yells inside my head "RUN!!! RUN!!!! RUN!!!!". So I ran outside and took a big breath. Ran back in and started opening all of the windows and doors in my house. It took a good 2 hours for me to be able to go back in. Even with everything open. I could not go back in. We are talking a 12x12 inch patch sprayed.

Then the adhesive for the new countertops were the same. I will never remodel again!!

[loraleena]

Yea anything new is bad news. My landlord has to get me a new microwave and I am afraid it will spell like plastic!!! I'll never own a new car either!

[Leslie C.]

I recently told my doctor that my sense of smell of very, very keen. He just looked at me strangely and said that hopefully it will get better as my body heals. But....I'm like you......I can smell everything and it seems as though it stays in my nose to the point of irritation. Can that be possible (??).

[Rachel--24]

I recently told my doctor that my sense of smell of very, very keen. He just looked at me strangely and said that hopefully it will get better as my body heals. But....I'm like you......I can smell everything and it seems as though it stays in my nose to the point of irritation. Can that be possible (??).

Yes...its possible. I used to experience the same thing. The chemicals would seem to linger....I could actually *feel* it circulating through my system and reactions would occur. I could also sometimes taste fragrances or other chemicals in my mouth. It was because my body was having alot of difficulty with detoxification.

I'm still sensitive but now I know how to control it so that I very rarely reach that level of toxicity. I can control it by avoiding certain foods and chemicals which impair detoxification for me.

Alot of people use the "bucket theory" to explain why this happens.....its the easiest way to explain something that is actually quite complicated. If each and every toxin we are exposed to on a daily basis were to get thrown into a bucket....a healthy body should keep the toxins from building up....the toxins should leave the body and the bucket should never fill up.

When detoxification is impaired (can be from a heavy toxic burden, or a genetic vulnerability) we accumalte more and more toxins. If the body is less capable of moving the toxins out efficiently....eventually the bucket fills up. Once the bucket starts to spill over we experience symptoms such as chemical sensitivity.

It means that our body is heavily burdened by toxins and can no longer handle small exposures to chemicals. When the bucket is overflowing toxins remain in the body for a longer period of time.....which triggers immune reactions.

[Leslie C.]

Thanks, Rachel! This makes sense.

So being gluten free may not be enough, is that correct?

[Di-gfree]

I need a new mattress, but I'm afraid to get one because of the 'new' smell. I returned a new recliner chair because the smell from the fabric was too strong! I can't stand smoke from woodstoves when it permeates the neighbourhood.

[darlindeb25]

Last weekend, my daughter and I had gone shopping. On the trip home, we passed a church school that had a carnival going on. A big carnival with amusement rides, the whole works. All of a sudden this horrible scent hit me, and I could hardly catch my breath. Holly asked if she should shut the window, to which I finally said, "No, the scent will be trapped in the car then!" When I could finally breathe again, I said, "What was that smell?" She says, "Mom, all I smelled was popcorn!" Now really, could the scent of popcorn really have hit me that hard? What I thought I was smelling were diesel fumes. Is it possible that I smelled the scent of the motors running for the rides, and all she smelled was popcorn? I did not smell popcorn!

[Rachel--24]

So being gluten free may not be enough, is that correct?

For some people it can improve the situation....some people actually become MORE sensitive after removing gluten. In most cases of multiple chemical sensitivity the problem is more complex.

[Rachel--24]

Is it possible that I smelled the scent of the motors running for the rides, and all she smelled was popcorn? I did not smell popcorn!

Usually when I would react to things they were not noticeable to anyone else. People who have no problems with detoxification are not usually affected by toxins in the same way. When I was healthy I never noticed the scent of a persons deoderant, or their shampoo....I never noticed the exhaust from other cars on the road or the fabric softener in the air when the neighbor does laundry. When I got sick these things became VERY noticeable...and they tend to linger.

[Guest missmyrtle]

This thread has been dormant for some time but I would like to ask if any one has become highly sensitive to a formerly much used and tolerated product after becoming gluten-free?

The reason I ask is that I have used Nag Champa incence for about 25 years everyday and yet since becoming gluten-free it actually smells like plastic to me and irritates my sinus greatly. Of course I have now switched to a very gentle japanese brand with no ill effects and am curious to know if such a thing has happened to others?

[darlindeb25]

Our sensitivities seem to change over time. I was really bad for a while, everything made me sick. One night, I put hair dye on my hair, and then went for a walk on my gazelle, while waiting the time out before rinsing the dye out. I have used this same hair dye for years, still do. That night, while walking on the gazelle, I must have breathed in too much of the scent, and got very ill. It has not happened since, of course, I will never get on the gazelle again with the hair dye on my head.

My other sensitivities to scents have improved too. There are still some things that bother me, but not to the extend of what they used too.

The reason I ask is that I have used Nag Champa incence for about 25 years everyday and yet since becoming gluten-free it actually smells like plastic to me and irritates my sinus greatly.

This absolutely could bother you.

[ranger]

I never could stand strong smells - chemicals, perfume, body sprays. Can't breathe, makes me sick. I use none of the crap and won't let it in my house. I remember one time I came home and my DH and his friend were working on a model car. I thaught I was going to die! Funny there are so many of us like that. Wonder why?

[Guest missmyrtle]

I never could stand strong smells - chemicals, perfume, body sprays. Can't breathe, makes me sick. I use none of the crap and won't let it in my house. I remember one time I came home and my DH and his friend were working on a model car. I thaught I was going to die! Funny there are so many of us like that. Wonder why?

Mmm, interesting. I feel ill around chemical perfumes too but incense has never bothered me before Coeliac diagnosis and I have to wonder about Candida too as a factor in chemical sensitivity.

Must remember to be more careful as I too work with model paints often and its very toxic stuff. In fact when I translate from the Japanese the warnings are scary. Bet incense has some nasties in it too.

Guess the perfume companies won't be getting us hanging out at their counters then!

[Becky C]

I'm sensitive to a lot of things too! I have to be really careful with medications, and scented things and regular candles are not good either. I can tolerate soy candles, but I'm not as sensitive as some of you seem to be. I actually have a worse sense of smell than most people--I'm always the one smelling something 200 ft later, or not at all. I will still react to something even when I can't smell it, or can barely smell it though. This actually can cause more problems, as sometimes I will react to something before I really smell it...weird that I would be the opposite of most of you though. I worked in a plastics factory for a while, and it got to the point where I was having asthma attacks almost daily, so I had to quit.

I have the same problem with the "new" smell on things. For some of them I have come up with solutions for, most of them I just try to avoid buying them new until I have to. One thing that worked was when I had to get a new mattress--my brother worked in a furniture store, and when they delivered new furniture they would take the people's old furniture for free. Anyone who worked in the store was allowed to take these "old" pieces of furniture--including mattresses--if they were the first one to speak for them. Some of their customers were rich people who replaced their furniture every year (I can't imagine being able to do that), and a lot of that used furniture was in almost new condition, but without the "new" smell. My brother got a mattress that was from one of these customers, and before it entered the house he put a hypoallergenic covering on it. I have never had a problem with it. Of course, looking back there could have been several problems with this--the previous owners could have been some of those with the "stench of the well groomed," as someone else put it, and a lot of the so-called "hypoallergenic" mattress covers are made of plastic and have a worse "new" smell than the mattress itself. It worked for me though, and it has led me to try other gently used things. Clothes aren't a problem, as I can just wash them a few times before wearing them, but I've been known to get used shoes, as well as kitchen appliances that are in excellent condition, but not brand new.

Anyway, I didn't mean to ramble, I just wanted to share some of my experiences. It's great to have found this forum--it's very helpful when I'm so new to everything!

[sylviaann]

I've always been sensitive to chemicals, fragrances etc. and my oldest very obviously is as well. I noticed after I went on the diet I'm not as bad as I used to be. At it's worst I could not go anywhere near the cleaning aisles in the grocery or I would get dizzy, chest pains, headaches and other symptoms. After being off gluten it has seemed to improve and while they still bother me it's not to that degree. Is there any connection? All I can think of is that my immune system has gotten better and maybe that plays a role?

How ironic..I have been doing research on this very issue! My dietician ordered an Organic Acids test for me a few months ago and it revealed that I have been exposed to a Xylene. Xylene is a toxic petroleum chemical found in gasoline, paint, cleaning solvents/household cleaning products, adhesives, upholstery, pillows, water bottles, carpeting and the list goes on. I am currently "detoxing" from this exposure....here is an article on the link between multiple chemical sensitivities (MCS) and gluten intolerance!

Open Original Shared Link

Sylviaann