Updated 23 July 2024
Embarking on a toxin-free life can be an overwhelming and transformative experience. To help navigate this road, I have found in-depth documentaries to be particularly helpful to understand how these pollutants affect us, including: Documentary films, Multiple Chemical Sensitivity research and lectures, and related eBooks.
This page is a resource that will help you become an informed consumer.
Living With Multiple Chemical Sensitivities
Toxic chemicals have infiltrated all aspects of modern living — household items, consumer products, electronics, food, food packaging, personal care products, soaps, pharmaceuticals, toys and play mats, and even our water supply.
Imagine having a home that makes you sick. You may make the connections much later to discover how common household items and materials like paint, carpeting, new building materials and insecticides are now your worst enemies. Your bones ache, you’re feverish, you suffer from extreme headaches, disabling fatigue, mental confusion, asthma and nausea.
You realise you are dealing with something called “MCS”, also known as environmental illness, chemical intolerance, and toxicant induced loss of tolerance or TILT.
Are you ill? Or is it your environment that is poisoned?
The longer you stay in your house, the sicker you get but you can’t imagine how or where you’re going to find a safe home. You begin to wonder if you will ever get back to feeling well, and how others respond to your “invisible illness”.
If you have imagined a stronger, more vibrant and happier you, a calm and peaceful home, you are tackling the tasks of living free of toxins. I hope this list is helpful to you and your loved ones to understand the world of MCS.
The Poison in Us All - 2023 (full documentary)
“The Poison in Us All,” a documentary by Bloomberg Investigates, explores the origins of per- and polyfluoroalkyl chemicals (PFAS) or “forever chemicals,” and how they are putting our lives and the lives of future generations at risk.
Rates of cancer diagnosis in children are increasing in Minnesota, USA, which is where chemical company 3M’s global headquarters are located. As far back as the 1960s, the company has been dumping PFAS chemicals in the surrounding areas.
Minnesota sued 3M for the damage that it has caused to the state’s natural resources, and in 2018, the company was ordered to pay $850 million for contaminating the state’s water supply for decades.
The US EPA now recognizes more than 14,000 different chemical structures as PFAS.
Homesick - 2013 (full documentary)
Director Susan Abod hits the road to learn whether other people with MCS are finding safe housing. On her journey to the Southwestern United States, Susan meets people from all walks of life. Their living quarters range from a house on stilts to tents and a teepee.
Funny, You Don't Look Sick: An Autobiography of an Illness
Director Susan Abod also made another film about MCS.
I made a film, the first documentary I made. called "Funny, You Don't Look Sick: An Autobiography of an Illness" was basically about the, you know, having this illness. And--and I took people on a tour through my house and said, 'Well, it looks like a normal place. But you know, there's no carpeting, there's radiant heat, there's no gas stove, there's no paint, nobody smokes in the building. So when I was done with that film, and you know, this was before email, it showed in 1995. And we-- it wound up going to a lot of support groups. And it was by word of mouth or newsletter or something like that. Then it dawned on me that I had this access to--in Boston, there was the American with Disabilities Act, had an arts mini grant available, and I was starting to have trouble with my housing.
I came up with the idea, how to meet others. I mean, simply what you said. And the--a film would be a great way to do it since I didn't have the resources, if I could get money in order to make my van accessible, money to hire a camera woman. So that's what I did. And we only had paper newsletters. And that's how I did it, from phone contact to phone contact to build up a tour of people to talk to. And that's how I did it. — Susan Abod, from podcast interview https://www.chemicalsensitivitypodcast.org/1970633/11732992
stink! - 2015 (Full Documentary)
STINK! a 2015 American documentary film directed by Jon J. Whelan. The film explores why there are toxins and carcinogens legally hidden in American consumer products.Award-winning film on dangerous chemical ingredients hidden in everyday products. The New York Times says, "Jon Stewart...would probably approve of ‘Stink!’” Entertaining, enlightening, witty, and at times absurd, you’ll never smell the same after Stink!”.
Addicted to Plastic - 2018 (Full Documentary)
ADDICTED TO PLASTIC is a point-of-view style documentary that encompasses three years of filming in 12 countries on 5 continents, including two trips to the middle of the Pacific Ocean where plastic debris accumulates. The film details plastic's path over the last 100 years and provides a wealth of expert interviews on practical and cutting edge solutions to recycling, toxicity and biodegradability.
Your space is your sanctuary
These documentaries expose the harms of toxic chemicals, offering insights from science, healthcare providers, and people suffering with its related health problems.
There are building biologists who have walked this path of recovery — attaining a higher level of calm to their environment and to themselves, and you can take advantage of this knowledge and guidance in creating a healthier and less stressful living and working environment.
