Data show a simple nasal spray can neutralize the SARS-CoV-2 virus and help alleviate symptoms of COVID disease, but the feds block any mention of these benefits.
The FDA and the FTC have sent warning letters to at least five companies marketing a wide range of antiseptic nasal sprays containing xylitol, saline, povidone-iodine, or some combination of these ingredients. The companies cited studies demonstrating their nasal sprays were able to neutralize and kill the coronavirus. We also have learned that the nose is the dominant site where the virus replicates and infects other areas of the body. Rather than widely disseminating this important public health information, the FTC and the FDA are ruthlessly banning this information and taking these companies to court to silence them. The CDC, whose mission is to increase the “health security” of our nation, has flatly refused to advise Americans to use nasal rinses despite the mountain of evidence showing they work. This highlights everything wrong with our healthcare system.
What kinds of claims were these companies making that required the government to clamp down? Xlear, which makes a nasal spray with xylitol, saline, and grapefruit seed extract, was censored by the FTC for simply discussing the results of more than a dozen studies demonstrating the plausibility of using its nasal spray to help with COVID. These studies show that Xlear destroyed 99.9 percent of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, that xylitol blocks the adhesion of bacteria and viruses, including SARS-CoV-2, to human tissue, and that the use of nasal sprays for COVID decreases viral activity in the nasal pathway, prevents transmission, expedites recovery, decreases disease severity, and reduces hospitalization and mortality.
Might this be useful information for the government to share with us during a global pandemic, with viral variants continually popping up and throwing vaccine effectiveness into question? Undoubtedly, but the FTC has attempted to ban the company from sharing this information. In fact, the FTC has sued Xlear for refusing to take down the “unsupported” health claims from its website that it’s nasal sprays can prevent or treat COVID, showing just how far the government will go to throttle natural options to stay healthy and protect drug and vaccine industry profits.
Not only has the federal government prevented these companies from disseminating this scientifically supported information; they have refused requests to alert the public themselves. Primary care physicians and pulmonologists have petitioned the CDC to issue guidance on the use of nasal sprays to blunt the virus’s impact. The CDC didn’t budge.
What is galling about the government’s actions here is that, for many months at the beginning of the pandemic, there were no other options. Given that substances like xylitol, povidone iodine, and saline are remarkably safe, why not share this information? When the available evidence suggests that these products can help, they are safe, and there aren’t other solutions, it is lunacy not to share this information.
The FTC is also censoring health information about povidone iodine, another ingredient in nasal sprays and mouthwashes. A randomized clinical trial found that a povidone iodine mouthwash, gargle, and nasal spray significantly reduced the viral load in patients with mild to moderate COVID-19. Other evidence shows that an iodine mouth-rinse for 30 seconds can prevent the virus from attaching to oral and nasal tissues. For these reasons, iodine has been used as a prophylactic measure across the globe to reduce disease transmission. Oral rinses have also been found to reduce infections after heart surgery. The Frontline COVID-19 Critical Care Alliance recommends a twice daily antiseptic mouthwash that includes povidone iodine, cetylpyridinium chloride, and essential oils. An iodine-containing nasal spray is also a plausible prophylactic based on the above evidence.
This is all part of a widespread censorship campaign against supposedly fraudulent products making COVID-19 health claims. The FTC and FDA assert that these companies violated federal law simply by describing the studies showing how nasal irrigation can help with COVID, and only drugs that are FDA-approved can claim to prevent, treat, or mitigate a disease.
As we’ve explained before, FDA-approval requires randomized controlled trials (RCTs), which are incredibly expensive. Drug companies can afford them because their drugs are patentable, and the research costs can be recouped once the drug gets approved. Natural products are generally not strongly patentable, so the companies cannot afford the astronomical sums required for RCTs.
The point isn’t that nasal sprays are a magic COVID bullet. The point is that, during a pandemic, the government should embrace an “all of the above” approach to a novel public health problem, informing the public about safe therapies that can plausibly be expected to help. It is lunacy to expect us to wait for clinical trials before a medicine is recommended for COVID. The truth seems to be that, if it isn’t a vaccine, the government doesn’t want to hear about anything that can help with COVID.
Action Alert! Write to the FTC, CDC, and FDA, urging them to alert the public about the benefits of nasal irrigation for staying healthy during the pandemic. Please send your message immediately.
