H E A LT H
FEDS SEEK TO BLOCK PROMOTION OF A NASAL SPRAY
AGAINST COVID Xlear nasal spray.
By Alice Giordano
26 I N S I G H T November 12 – 18, 2021
ple should continue to rely on medical professionals over ads.” The commission and the Justice Department declined to make any further comment. XLEAR’S ATTORNEY ROBERT Hous-
man, of the Washington firm Book Hill Partners, told The Epoch Times that the commission is “flat out lying” about the company’s claims being unsupported. Housman pointed out that the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)—along with the National Institutes of Health (NIH), an arm of the Department of Health and Human Services—funded clinical studies of the use of nasal sprays like Xlear’s and published findings last year that found they were an effective treatment and method of prevention for COVID-19. “When Xlear tells people about sci-
CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: SAMIRA BOUAOU/THE EPOCH TIMES; THORSTEN FRENZEL/PIXABAY
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HE LEA DING U. S. manufacturer of xylitol-based products says the federal government is deliberately trying to conceal a nasal spray it developed that it says has been scientifically proven to be effective in treating and preventing COVID-19. The U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit in federal court against Utahbased company Xlear on Oct. 28, saying it has deceptively advertised its nasal spray as a treatment and preventative of COVID-19. The lawsuit asks a federal court to permanently ban the company from promoting the nasal spray as a treatment for COVID-19 and also asks that monetary penalties be levied against it. COVID-19 is the disease caused by
the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus. The DOJ filed the complaint on behalf of the Federal Trade Commission, which alleges the company has violated the Federal Trade Commission Act and the Consumer Protection Act by making false claims about the benefits. The spray’s main ingredients are saline, grapefruit seed extract, and xylitol, a plant-derived sweetener commonly used in oral care products. “Companies can’t make unsupported health claims, no matter what form a product takes, or what it supposedly prevents or treats,” said Samuel Levine, director of the trade commission’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, said in a press release on the lawsuit. “That’s the lesson of this case and many others like it, and it’s why peo-
