In this study, about 60% of the women with MCS were
found to have been sexually abused, as compared to 25%
of the women in the control group. This seems to indicate
that a large number of cases of MCS have a psychological
origin. For these people, MCS may be their expression of
an underlying psychological state caused by sexual abuse
rather than any sort of toxic or immunological phenomenon.
That's not the same thing as saying that all MCS cases
are psychological in origin -- but about a third seem to be
caused by sexual abuse. It seems indisputable that a large
percentage of MCS cases are psychological in origin,
the only question being whether the actual figure is 100%
or some smaller number.
Ann Allergy 1993 Dec;71(6):538-46
Adult sequelae of childhood abuse presenting as environmental illness.
Staudenmayer H, Selner ME, Selner JC.
Allergy Respiratory Institute of Colorado, Denver 80222.
Sixty-three patients with polysomatic complaints
attributed to sensitivity to environmental
chemicals had detailed clinical assessments and
diagnostic psychologic evaluations. Objective
medical parameters failed to substantiate their
beliefs that multiple chemicals were the cause of
their problems. A group of 64 patients with chronic
medical conditions and defined psychologic
disorders not attributed to chemical exposure
served as controls. Approximately half the patients
in each group underwent long-term psychotherapy,
and in these patients, the prevalence of
physical and sexual childhood abuse was significantly
higher (P < .05) among the cohort of
women who attributed their symptoms to environmental
or chemically related illness. These data
suggest that somatization may reflect sequelae of
childhood abuse and may play an important role
in the illness experienced by women who believe
they are sensitive to environmental chemicals.