Ziem, G, McTamney, J · Environmental health perspectives · 1997 · DOI
This study looked at people who react strongly to everyday chemicals—like cleaning products, pesticides, and new materials—at levels that don't bother most people. Researchers gave these patients questionnaires and ran medical tests to understand their symptoms. They found that chemical sensitivity often overlaps with ME/CFS and fibromyalgia, and that several body systems (liver, nervous system, immune system) appear to be affected in these patients.
This study is important because it documents the frequent co-occurrence of chemical sensitivity with ME/CFS and fibromyalgia, suggesting these conditions may share common pathophysiologic mechanisms. Recognizing chemical sensitivity as a biological condition (not psychological) and including it in ME/CFS diagnostic frameworks could improve patient identification and guide future research into shared environmental triggers and organ system involvement.
This study does not prove that chemical sensitivity causes ME/CFS or vice versa—it only shows they often occur together. The cross-sectional design cannot establish causation or determine whether chemical exposure initiates disease versus revealing pre-existing susceptibility. The abstract provides limited detail on specific laboratory abnormalities or their statistical significance, so claims about organ system involvement remain preliminary.
About the PEM badge: “PEM required” means post-exertional malaise was an explicit required diagnostic criterion for participant inclusion in this study — not that PEM was studied, observed, or discussed. Studies using criteria that do not require PEM (e.g. Fukuda, Oxford) are tagged “PEM not required”. How the atlas works →
The first block is for the primary paper and is the citation you should use in research work. The atlas-snapshot line only applies if you are specifically referring to this atlas’s reading of the paper on the date shown.
Primary citation
Ziem, G & McTamney, J (1997). Profile of patients with chemical injury and sensitivity.. Environmental health perspectives. https://doi.org/10.1289/ehp.97105s2417
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-ziem-1997-profile-patients,
author = {Ziem, G and McTamney, J},
title = {Profile of patients with chemical injury and sensitivity.},
journal = {Environmental health perspectives},
year = {1997},
doi = {10.1289/ehp.97105s2417},
note = {PubMed: 9167975},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/ziem-1997-profile-patients},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-26. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/ziem-1997-profile-patients
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