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Toxicology and Industrial Health, Vol. 15, No. 3-4, 284-294 (1999)
DOI: 10.1177/074823379901500302

Are we on the threshold of a new theory of disease? Toxicant-induced loss of tolerance and its relationship to addiction and abdiction

Claudia S. Miller

Environmental and Occupational Medicine, Department of Family Practice, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, 7703 Floyd Curl Drive, San Antonio, Texas, millercs{at}uthscsa.edu

`Toxicant-induced loss of tolerance' (or TILT) describes a two-step disease process in which (1) certain chemical exposures, e.g., indoor air contaminants, chemical spills, or pesticide applications, cause certain susceptible persons to lose their prior natural tolerance for common chemicals, foods, and drugs (initiation); (2) subsequently, previously tolerated exposures trigger symptoms. Responses may manifest as addictive or abdictive (avoidant) behaviors. In some affected individuals, overlapping responses to common chemical, food, and drug exposures, as well as habituation to recurrent exposures, may hide (mask) responses to particular triggers. Accumulating evidence suggests that this disease process might underlie a broad array of medical illnesses including chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, migraine headaches, depression, asthma, the unexplained illnesses of Gulf War veterans, multiple chemical sensitivity, and attention deficit disorder.

Key Words: addiction • chemical intolerance • chronic fatigue • environmental illness • Gulf War veterans • multiple chemical sensitivity • theory of disease


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