Idiopathic Environmental Intolerance/Multiple Chemical Sensitivity

The acquisition of a place to live is among the most stressful decision processes that we humans face. When personal life experience has taught us that there is a near-certainty that any selected space will contain something in its construction that will cause us extreme misery, then the process becomes traumatic. Yet this is the situation that sufferers of idiopathic environmental intolerance (IEI)—also known as multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS)—face whenever attempting to identify a place to live. Because it is a constant struggle to cope with their own body’s reaction to the perpetual assault on their systems from everyday environmental irritants, we in the SafeHaven™ project call these people IEI/CMS Warriors.

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) emanating from commonly used building materials, particularly petroleum-based products including elastomers & plastics, caulks, and seals, often cause intolerable physical reactions of headache, nausea, rash, or other symptoms, following exposure to even small quantities of an individual’s trigger chemicals. A report by the National Institute of Health (Steinemann, 2018) estimated that 12.8% of the US population reported medically diagnosed MCS (43 million people), and 25.9% self-reported chemical sensitivity  (88 million people)—and that this represents an increase of 300% and 200%, respectively, over estimates from ten years previous.

IEI/CMS Condition and Considerations

Description of the Condition

Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS), also known Idiopathic Environmental Intolerance (IEI), is a sometimes excruciatingly debilitating ailment that is activated by exposure to a wide range of irritants in the environment that are innocuous to most of the population. Symptoms include headache, dizziness, nausea, cognitive impairment, rash, aching and weakness in the joints, heart palpitations, irritation of mucous membranes, breathing difficulties, and asthma attacks. The condition can range from mild to severely debilitating, and environmental conditions that can stimulate the adverse response include allergens; volatile organic compounds (VOCs); air fresheners, scents and fragrances; cleaning supplies; electromagnetic fields; and impurities in the drinking water.
Exposure to even small quantities of an individual’s triggers can induce indicators that can interfere with enjoyment of life and even impede productive work. A report by the National Institute of Health (Steinemann, 2018) estimated that 12.8% of the US population reported medically diagnosed MCS, and 25.9% self-reported chemical sensitivity—and that this represents an increase of 300% and 200%, respectively, over estimates from ten years previous. These figures extrapolate to a US population of diagnosed MCS-sufferers of 43 million people, and a self-reporting US population of 88 million people; these numbers are likely to grow.

Measures of Consideration and Alleviation

Airborne Allergens and Ventilation

Airborne allergens are usually naturally-occurring microscopic particles that float in the air and stimulate an over-reactive immune response when introduced into a person’s respiratory system or contact the person’s skin. Common airborne allergens are pollen, dust mites, pet dander, mold spores, and cockroach debris. The effort to eliminate these irritants from the home begins with decisions during construction of the house, but it must continue through daily efforts on the part of the home-owner to properly operate and maintain the implemented systems and materials and to maintain a spotless home environment.

Home design strategies emphasize selection of materials for the interior environment that both inherently resist the creation of these irritants and they must also be easy to keep clean. Therefore, porous materials subject to the growth of mold or harboring of dust mites and lint—like wood or carpet—should be avoided, and smooth floor coverings should be coved a short way up the wall to eliminate seams between the wall and the floor where moisture and debris can accumulate. On the one hand, smooth surfaces of an inert material like glass and stainless steel are generally a good choice. On the other hand, certain specialty clay surface finishes are sometimes selected for the quality of actively removing irritants from the air.

Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning should be integrated with a fine-particle Filtration system (HVACF) and incorporate an air exchange mechanism—a Heat Recovery Ventilator (HRV) or Energy Recovery Ventilator (ERV)—that preserves environmental temperature and humidity conditioning as fresh exterior air is introduced to the space and stale air from the interior is expelled outside. The area where cooking occurs must be well ventilated to quickly draw cooking odors and fumes out of the living space, and the surrounding area must be easy to clean. Cooking spatters and grease should be quickly removed using non-stimulating cleaning materials to avoid the accumulation of crud.

Heat Exchange ERV vs HRV

The primary difference between a Heat Recovery Ventilator (HRV) and an Energy Recovery Ventilator (ERV) is that an ERV transfers both heat and moisture between outgoing and incoming air, while an HRV only transfers heat. ERVs excel in humid climates to manage moisture, while HRVs are better suited for cold, dry climates to retain humidity.

Heat Recovery Ventilator (HRV):

• Best for: Colder climates with dry winters where indoor air can become too dry.
• Function: Transfers heat only. It uses stale, warm, outgoing air to heat up fresh, cold, incoming air.
• Humidity: Does not manage moisture, allowing humidity to stay inside, which can be beneficial in winter.

Energy Recovery Ventilator (ERV):

• Best for: Hot/humid climates or houses that are too humid in winter.
• Function: Transfers heat and moisture (enthalpy).
• Humidity: Helps balance indoor humidity by reducing humidity in the summer and retaining some moisture in the winter.

Key Differences Summary:

• Moisture Management: ERV transfers moisture; HRV does not.
• Climate Application: ERVs are ideal for humid/mixed climates; HRVs are best for cold/dry climates.
• Energy Efficiency: Both are highly efficient, but ERVs can reduce the load on air conditioners better by managing humidity.

Both systems are designed to provide fresh air while maximizing energy efficiency.

Volatile Organic Compounds

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) are emitted from many of the synthetic materials in our everyday life. The “new car smell” is actually the volatilization of plasticizers that are used to modify the hardness of petrochemical-derived automotive interior elements. As these softening chemicals volatilize over time, the odor (and trigger of the IEI/MCS sufferer) gradually diminishes. VOCs emanate also from new carpet, fresh paint, adhesives, caulks, seals, lubricants, and many other materials common to our synthetic living environment. While the release of VOCs reduces dramatically when solvents evaporate as paints and adhesives cure, some of these products continue to emanate small quantities of VOCs for many years.

The key to eliminating VOCs in the home is to utilize elements that do not emit VOCs. Examples of desirable materials are inert surface-covering materials, such as stainless steel, tile, and glass, and fully cured polymers, such as Marmoleum® and the LiteTex® composite sheet used in the shell construction of SafeHaven Refuge™ small homes. The smooth surfaces of these materials make them also easy to wipe clean of grease and dirt. When paints and adhesives must be used, those that are designed to work without releasing VOCs during and/or (especially) after the curing process should be selected whenever possible. Failure to abide strictly to these rules of thumb can render an otherwise desirable home intolerable to those afflicted with IEI/CMS.

Fragrances

Many sufferers of IEI/CMS cannot abide fragrances that are used in air fresheners, antiperspirants, cleaning supplies, and personal scents. These must be eliminated from the home environment. Many cleaning supplies and air fresheners contain fragrances to mask underlying odors. Strategies to eliminate the offending aerosols should be chosen in preference to masking.

Water Quality and Taste

Impurities in the water can induce a nausea response in some IEI/MCS Warriors. The water systems proposed for a new home must be tested prior to the finalization of the plumbing system. Some impurities are introduced into the water by deterioration in pipes of old city-water systems, and these must be filtered out if the water is to be usable. Some impurities are introduced into the water when they leach out of the newly installed pipes within the home. These systems should be thoroughly purged before habitation. For particularly sensitive subjects, water that will be delivered to the faucet must be tested in the proposed plumbing system to ensure the minimum possible discomfort. In some cases, filtering city-water and delivering it through tested house plumbing may not be enough, so alternatives—such as establishing an ongoing fresh-water delivery regimen or in-home distillation process—must be implemented.

Cleanliness and Cleaning

Many cleaning solvents emit fumes that are intolerable to sufferers of IEI/MCS. The evaluation of materials should extend to cleaning supplies in case the manner of cleaning that is found to be tolerable impacts the physical design of the home space. During the COVID pandemic, a disinfecting solvent called hypochlorous acid (HOCl) that is natural to the human immune system became more widely recognized. It has been shown to be more effective at killing bacteria and disrupting viruses than bleach, yet it is natural to, and almost entirely innocuous to, the human body. Its major obstacle to wide-spread use is the relatively short shelf life of the molecular structure and the low cost and ease of production. Many IEI/MCS sufferers use this solvent in every-day cleaning, and it is a central element in the SafeHaven Refuge™ small home design.

Electromagnetic

Some IEI/CMS Warriors are adversely affected by electromagnetic interference emanating from electrical appliances and wiring. Some individuals will want to evaluate the proposed electrical system and cooking and other appliances prior to finalizing any home design. A system proven to be tolerable for such individuals must be selected.

SleepPod™

The SafeHaven SleepPod™ is a sleeping box that can be set up inside a room or out in the yard to provide a night’s sleep protected from the chemical assaults of the home. Whether it is mildew, dust mites, pollen, or VOCs from Ammonia, Formaldehyde, Toluene, limonene, n-heptane, or other airborne irritants that trigger your adverse physiological responses, the SleepPod™ provides safe cocoon to isolate your body from the environment. Its air exchange and filtration system, comprised of heavy-duty active-carbon and HEPA filters ensure a supply of clean, fresh air from either the surrounding room or from the outside.

Mobile material testing space for IEI/MCS Warriors

FieldWorks Homes™ is creating the first safe material testing space for chemically sensitive individuals. SafeHaven LifeLab™ provides a client-guided sensitivity evaluation, before committing to a home purchase, whereby IEI/CMS Warriors may directly determine their personal tolerance of specific products, materials, and adhesives that could be used in the construction of a home environment. By exposing the client, in a controlled manner, to objects ranging from floor and wall coverings to cook-tops, ovens, and utility systems, the Client can develop a roster of materials that are tolerable to their personal biology. Clients may receive their own personal Tolerable Materials Portfolio, which can be utilized for their own purpose or will serve as a guide to the construction of their own SafeHaven Refuge™ small home. A bonus for SafeHaven LifeLab™ clients is that fifty cents of every dollar spent on these evaluations will be credited toward the purchase of a SafeHaven Refuge™ small home from ShoeBox Designs™. By verifying that the basic home structure and every component employed in its construction is tolerable to the home buyer, there will be a high probability of success in acquiring a truly safe haven and healthy refuge in their new home.