Self-reported sensitivity to chemical exposures in five clinical populations and healthy controls

Two hundred and twenty-five subjects, including normal volunteers and patie nts with previously documented seasonal affective disorder (SAD), chronic f atigue syndrome (CFS), Gushing's syndrome, Addison's disease and obsessive- compulsive disorder (OCD), completed a self-rated inventory of reported sen sitivity to various chemical exposures. Patients with CFS, Addison's diseas e and SAD self-reported more sensitivity to chemical exposures than normal controls. In addition, women reported more sensitivity than men. This repor t suggests that chemical sensitivity may be a relevant area to explore in c ertain medical and psychiatric populations. A possible relationship between reported chemical sensitivity and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axi s functioning is discussed. (C) Published by Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd.