The uncontrolled spreading of the coronavirus pandemic triggered a considerable increase in the use of improvised therapies that lack a scientific basis and deviate from set medical directives.
However, cases of people improvising preventative and treatment therapies without solid scientific backing are not a rare occurrence.
One such persistent case is the consumption of Master/Miracle Mineral Solution (MMS) and other sodium chlorite products sold under different names, like Chlorine Dioxide (CD), Miracle Mineral Supplement, and Water Purification Solution.
So, is the sodium chlorite in these products safe for human consumption or not?
That’s what we will address in this post. We’ll also tell you the effects caused by ingesting the “miracle” products and why you should be cautious about consuming them.
Is Sodium Chlorite and its Byproducts Safe for Human Consumption?
For the record, sodium chlorite and its chlorine dioxide and chlorite ion byproducts have safe uses. For example, they are used to render water safe for human consumption at water plants, but only in the set safe amounts, 0.8 mg/L for chlorine dioxide and 1.0 mg/L for chlorite ion.
Despite this, people still continue to consume them, even after regular warnings from health and food control agencies like the FDA. In fact, these products are still promoted on social media platforms and sold by autonomous online distributors.
Despite this, people still continue to consume them, even after regular warnings from health and food control agencies like the FDA. In fact, these products are still promoted on social media platforms and sold by autonomous online distributors.
What’s worse, some of these distributors unfoundedly claim that the Miracle Mineral Solutions and Supplements have antibacterial, antiviral, and antimicrobial functions when mixed with citric acid. Specifically, they claim the products can cure diseases such as flu, cancer, hepatitis, autism, HIV/AIDS, and recently, also COVID-19.
Unfortunately, no known research confirms these claims. So, relying on the products only postpones the use of the established safe and effective treatments for these diseases.
As a health precaution, therefore, you should desist from purchasing and consuming these products. For you and your loved ones' sake.
Why?
For the above-mentioned reasons and those in the rest of this article, starting with the fact that the sodium chlorite in these products can be toxic and life-threatening when consumed in concentrated formulations.
Beware: MMS Combined with Citric Acid Turns into a Detergent
In addition to being a safe water purifier in the recommended amounts, sodium chlorite is also used in the industrial manufacture of detergents.
Unfortunately, the distributors selling MMS at a 28% sodium chlorite concentration in distilled water and asking you to mix it with citric acid before consumption feed you with a detergent.
This is true whether you replace the citric acid with lemon, lime, or the acid activator sold together with some of the products.
To be precise, adding acid to sodium chlorite turns it into chlorine dioxide, an effective bleaching agent for domestic uses but a toxic solution for human consumption.
So, what are the confirmed adverse effects of consuming MMS and other sodium chlorite products? That’s what the next section is about.
The Effects of Consuming Miracle Mineral Solution
While some experts consider the extreme “MMS is fatal” advisories misleading, there are established benign and adverse effects associated with consuming MMS and other sodium chlorite products in significant amounts.
The benign effects include mild cases of:
Nausea
Vomiting
Diarrhea
Abdominal pain
Unfortunately, some labels on the “miracle” products have normalized the vomiting and diarrhea effects as signs the product is performing its detoxifying function. You should take such claims with a large pinch of salt.
Cases where adverse effects have been reported include those where people consume the substances for long periods or take them in high doses.
In such cases, acute toxicity resulted, leading to hospitalization of the consumers. Adverse effects in such cases include:
Noteworthy electrolyte abnormalities
Changes in electrocardiogram signals
Altered mental status.
In an isolated case, the prolonged use of chlorine dioxide as a treatment for COVID-19 also triggered fatal intestinal perforation and bleeding. While the persistent use of chlorine dioxide was not the direct cause of death, it triggered a generalized clinical condition that led the patient to succumb after surgery.
The Bottom Line
Improvised preventative and treatment therapies can have adverse health effects, especially considering that they have no scientific backing or standard dosages.
This is true of the Miracle Mineral Solution and other sodium chlorite byproducts sold in the name of cures for diseases such as flu, cancer, HIV/AIDS, and the coronavirus.
While sodium chlorite has safe uses in water purification and detergent manufacturing, its ingestion in high concentrations can cause serious effects.
You should bear in mind the old saying about substances with safe uses: “The dose makes the poison.”
Allison Lardieri, Carmen Cheng, S. Christopher Jones & Lynda McCulley (2021) Harmful effects of chlorine dioxide exposure, Clinical Toxicology, 59:5, 448-449, DOI: 10.1080/15563650.2020.1818767.
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The uncontrolled spreading of the coronavirus pandemic triggered a considerable increase in the use of improvised therapies that lack a scientific basis and deviate from set medical directives.
