Coping strategies, social support and responsibility in chemical intolerance

To study coping strategies, social support and responsibility for improvement in chemical intolerance (CI).

Limited knowledge of CI among health professionals and lay persons places demands on the chemically intolerant individual's coping strategies and perception of social support and ability to take responsibility for improvement. However, there is sparse literature on these issues in CI.

A cross-sectional, questionnaire-based, quasi-experimental study.

Fifty-nine persons with mild, 92 with moderate and 31 with severe CI participated by rating (i) usage and effectiveness of six problem- and six emotion-focused coping strategies, (ii) emotional, instrumental and informative support provided by various sources and (iii) society's and the inflicted individual's responsibility for improvement.

The participants reported that the most commonly used and effective coping strategies were avoiding odorous/pungent environments and asking persons to limit their use of odorous/pungent substances (problem-focused strategies) as well as accepting the situation and reprioritising (emotion-focused strategies). High intolerance severity was associated with problem-focused coping strategies and relatively low intolerance with emotion-focused strategies. More emotional than instrumental and informative support was perceived, predominantly from the partner and other family members. Responsibility attributed to society was also found to increase from mild to moderate/severe intolerance.

Certain coping strategies are more commonly used and perceived as more effective than others in CI. However, intolerance severity plays a role regarding both coping strategies and responsibility. Emotional support appears to be the most available type of support.

For improved care, certain coping strategies may be suggested by nurses, the healthcare system needs to provide better social support to these patients and the issue of responsibility for improvement may be discussed with the patient.