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Toxicology and Industrial Health, Vol. 15, No. 3-4, 421-427 (1999)
DOI: 10.1177/074823379901500317

Low-level chemical sensitivity: implications for research and social policy

Nicholas A. Ashford

Center for Technology, Policy and Industrial Development, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT (E40-239), 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, nashford{at}mit.edu

There is increasing evidence that human exposure to levels of chemicals once thought to be safe—or presenting insignificant risk—are, in fact, harmful. So-called low-level exposures are now known to be associated with adverse biological effects including cancer, endocrine disruption, and chemical sensitivity. This requires that we change both (1) the way we design research linking chemicals and health, and (2) the solutions we devise to address chemically caused injury. The new and emerging science of low-level exposure to chemicals requires appropriate social policy responses which include regulation of toxic substances, notification of those exposed, and compensation and reasonable accommodation to those affected. Research and social policy need to be focused towards two distinct groups: (1) those individuals who could become chemically intolerant as a result of an initiating exposure, and (2) those individuals who have already become chemically intolerant and are now sensitive to chemicals at low levels.

Key Words: chemical exposures • chemical sensitivity • low level exposures • multiple chemical sensitivity • regulation • toxicant-induced loss of tolerance


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