Editing Multiple chemical sensitivity (section)

== History ==
MCS was first proposed as a distinct disease by [[Theron Randolph|Theron G. Randolph]] in 1950. In 1965, Randolph founded the [[Society for Clinical Ecology]] as an organization to promote his ideas about symptoms reported by his patients. As a consequence of his insistence upon his own, non-standard definition of ''allergy'' and his unusual theories about how the immune system and toxins affect people, the ideas he promoted were widely rejected, and [[clinical ecology]] emerged as a non-recognized medical specialty.<ref name="Current" />

Since the 1950s, many hypotheses have been advanced for the science surrounding multiple chemical sensitivity.<ref name=quebec-synth/>

In the 1990s, an association was noted with chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, and Gulf War syndrome.<ref name="Donnay">{{cite journal|author=Donnay|first=Albert H|date=1999|title=On the Recognition of Multiple Chemical Sensitivity in Medical Literature and Government Policy|journal=International Journal of Toxicology|volume=18|issue=6|pages=383–392|doi=10.1080/109158199225099|s2cid=72141513}}</ref>

In 1994, the AMA, [[American Lung Association]], [[United States Environmental Protection Agency|US EPA]] and the US [[Consumer Product Safety Commission]] published a booklet on [[Indoor air quality|indoor air pollution]] that discusses MCS, among other issues. The booklet further states that a pathogenesis of MCS has not been definitively proven, and that symptoms that have been self-diagnosed by a patient as related to MCS could actually be related to allergies or have a psychological basis, and recommends that physicians should counsel patients seeking relief from their symptoms that they may benefit from consultation with specialists in these fields.<ref name="urlIndoor Air Pollution: An Introduction for Health Professionals | Publications | Indoor Air | Air | US EPA">{{cite book|title=Indoor Air Pollution: An Introduction for Health Professionals|year=1994|publisher= Co-sponsored by: The American Lung Association (ALA), The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), and The American Medical Association (AMA)|url=http://www.epa.gov/iedweb00/pubs/hpguide.html#faq1|quote=[D]efinition of the phenomenon is elusive and its pathogenesis as a distinct entity is not confirmed....The current consensus is that in cases of claimed or suspected MCS, complaints should not be dismissed as psychogenic, and a thorough workup is essential. Primary care givers should determine that the individual does not have an underlying physiological problem and should consider the value of consultation with allergists and other specialists.|access-date=2008-06-30}}</ref>

In 1995, an Interagency Workgroup on Multiple Chemical Sensitivity was formed under the supervision of the Environmental Health Policy Committee within the [[United States Department of Health and Human Services]] to examine the body of research that had been conducted on MCS to that date. The work group included representatives from the [[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]], [[United States Environmental Protection Agency]], [[United States Department of Energy]], [[Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry]], and the [[National Institutes of Health]]. The Predecisional Draft document generated by the workgroup in 1998 recommended additional research in the basic epidemiology of MCS, the performance of case-comparison and challenge studies, and the development of a case definition for MCS. However, the workgroup also concluded that it was unlikely that MCS would receive extensive financial resources from federal agencies because of budgetary constraints and the allocation of funds to other, extensively overlapping syndromes with [[medically unexplained symptoms|unknown cause]], such as chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, and Gulf War syndrome. The Environmental Health Policy Committee is currently inactive, and the workgroup document has not been finalized.<ref>{{citation|last=Interagency Workgroup on Multiple Chemical Sensitivity|title=A Report on Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS)|date=1998-08-24|url=http://web.health.gov/environment/mcs/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140718033446/http://www.health.gov/environment/mcs/toc.htm|publisher=Web.health.gov|access-date=2014-06-08|archive-date=2014-07-18}}</ref>

The different understandings of MCS over the years have also resulted in different proposals for names.<ref name=":1" /> For example, in 1996 the International Programme on Chemical Safety proposed calling it ''idiopathic environmental illness'', because of their belief that chemical exposure may not the sole cause,<ref name="International Programme" /> while another researcher, whose definition includes people with allergies and acute poisoning, calls it ''chemical sensitivity''.<ref name=":1" />