A member of Congress echoes ANH’s frustration at the feds for ignoring cheap, affordable, and effective nasal sprays to help with COVID. Action Alert!
Earlier this year, Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) sent a letter to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) asking why the agency hasn’t informed the American people about the benefits of nasal hygiene in protecting against COVID-19, among other pressing questions about the government’s failure to take advantage of nasal sprays to help with COVID. These questions echo ANH’s coverage of this topic. We’re glad Rep. Mace is taking action, but the answers to her questions are simple: the FDA is once again acting to protect drug industry interests by blocking competition from natural products, no matter how much harm is caused. It is another reason why we need to fight for free speech about natural products.
Rep. Mace’s letter summarizes some extraordinarily compelling research about the benefits of nasal sprays. A randomized clinical trial (RCT) funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) clearly found that the use of simple saline nasal cleansing significantly reduced the severity of COVID-19 cases among already infected, symptomatic outpatients, with none of the patients requiring hospitalization. Another RCT found that the use of saline nasal hygiene by COVID-19 infected individuals over the age of 50 reduced the risk of hospitalization eight-fold.
We’ve pointed out previously that 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 efficacy 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.
Rep. Mace’s letter brings up another interesting point. A common refrain from government health bureaucrats is that natural medicines, such as nasal sprays with saline or xylitol, don’t have any clinical data to support them. Yet the CDC issued guidance early in the pandemic that all Americans should wear masks, a recommendation that was unsupported by clinical data.
The real reason the FDA and other health authorities don’t want us using nasal sprays is to protect Big Pharma profits. For one, nasal sprays for prevention undermine the argument about the need to get the COVID vaccines if an effective alternative exists. Additionally, there is ongoing research on a nasal spray containing a novel compound to fight COVID. The FDA wants to protect the drug industry, because the drug industry is responsible for funding a substantial portion (46%) of the FDA’s budget, and 65% of the funding for human drug regulatory activities are derived from user fees.
Unfortunately, it seems to be the case that the government is more concerned with protecting drug industry profits than with promoting public health with affordable, natural healthcare.
Action Alert! Write to your legislators and HHS, asking them why nasal hygiene has been ignored as a strategy for treatment and prevention during the pandemic. Please send your message immediately.
