Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Aug 25, 2026

Florida-Based Company Illegally Pushing Bleaching Agent as 'Cure' for COVID-19 Variants

Florida-Based Company Illegally Pushing Bleaching Agent as 'Cure' for COVID-19 Variants

US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data details at least 20,915 cases of the B.1.1.7 variant, which was first detected in the UK and later identified in the US in December 2020. As US health officials begin to recommend the use of booster shots to combat emerging variants, some folks are peddling potentially dangerous alternatives.

Miami, Florida-based Oclo Nanotechnology Science is one of several companies taking advantage of the ongoing COVID-19 situation in the US, according to a new report from The Guardian.

The outlet alleged that Oclo, a company that manufactures and sells chlorine dioxide solutions out of a makeshift laboratory, and its owner, Ricardo Garcia, is marketing its chlorine dioxide "immune booster" formula to US and Latin American consumers.

Despite potential side-effects, like severe vomiting, diarrhea, or life-threatening low blood pressure, Garcia's website advertises the chlorine dioxide solution as an "antiviral" treatment. In a normal commercial setting, a comparable bleach mixture would be used for industrial water treatment or bleaching textiles.

"B117 ... New variant of coronavirus, the most contagious and dangerous in the United States," reads the website's homepage. The next line touts the "great curative potential" of chlorine dioxide.

The front page also features alleged testimonials from customers who used the chlorine dioxide solution to "treat" a number of infections, including vaginitis and COVID-19.

Milagros Herrera, a local patron from Miami, claimed their "5-year-old son with autism has been able to make an extraordinary recovery in just a few months." However, it is unclear what the child was recovering from.

Autism advocate Fiona O'Leary told The Guardian that Garcia's business is particularly concerning because he is actually a scientist.

"It’s very worrying to me because he’s a professional, and I’ve never seen a scientist make this product before," she said. "He has more knowledge on the chemicals and he’s going to be trusted more."

Furthermore, Garcia's products are being marketed on Facebook, Amazon and across social media platforms.

The Amazon product page for the so-called "immune booster" claims the solution has a "neutral and non-toxic taste."

A number of bleach "cures," like the "Miracle Mineral Solution (MMS)" or "Chlorine Dioxide Protocol," were flagged by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) prior to the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. At the time, the solutions were being marketed on social media websites as cures or remedies for "autism, cancer, HIV/AIDS, hepatitis and flu, among other conditions."

The US agency warns the solution, when mixed, can have "potentially life-threatening side effects." In short, the FDA says ingesting such products "is the same as drinking bleach."

The MMS made headlines back in July 2020 after federal prosecutors in Miami charged a Florida man and his three adult sons for allegedly peddling the solution as a COVID-19 cure.


Mark Grenon, 62, and his sons Jonathan, Jordan and Joseph were all charged with conspiracy to defraud the US and conspiracy to violate the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.

"Not only is this MMS product toxic, but its distribution and use may prevent those who are sick from receiving the legitimate healthcare they need," said Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Prime Minister Andy Burnham to Give Ukraine Classified Storm Shadow Blueprints for Domestic Missile Production
UK Graduate Job Vacancies Plunge 45% to Lowest Levels on Record
Iranian Hackers Shut Down British Power Plant for Four Days in Landmark Cyber Attack
Novak Djokovic Reveals Relentless Self-Doubt and Rejects Retirement in New Documentary
Trump Imposes 50% Tariffs on Canadian Goods After Bilateral Trade Talks Collapse
Australia Combines Indigenous Fire Knowledge With Satellite Tech to Combat Catastrophic Wildfires
Father and Son Jailed in Scotland Over £900,000 Airport Cannabis Smuggling Operation
UK Fraud Reports Surge Sevenfold as Criminals Exploit QR Codes in Parking Meters and Phishing Emails
Brighton Thrash Aston Villa in Four-Goal Opening Half as Manchester City Trail Bournemouth
Erin Patterson Appeals Triple Murder Convictions After Hotel Mixed Sequestered Jury With Prosecution
The rise and fall of Hui Ka Yan, China’s richest man
Woke: Britain Considers Plain Packaging for Cigars as Specialist Shops Warn of Industry Collapse
Britain's Public-Service Productivity Remains Below 2019 as £80 Billion Output Gap Fuels WFH Debate
Mandelson Epstein Case in Jeopardy as U.S. Files Stay Out of Reach
Prince Harry and Six Others Ordered to Pay £9.5 Million After High Court Defeat
Petrol Bombs Set Luxury Cars Alight Outside Birmingham Wedding as Police Hunt Three Men
Bitcoin Surges Toward $80,000 as Short Squeeze and ETF Inflows Ignite Crypto Rally
Twenty-Nine US States Take Meta to Trial Over Alleged Child Addiction on Instagram and Facebook
Former Scottish National Party Executive Peter Murrell Jailed for Five Years Over £400,000 Embezzlement
Moderna and Merck's Personalized Cancer Vaccine Succeeds in Historic Late-Stage Melanoma Trial
Prince Harry and Meghan to Move Back to Britain With Their Children
England and Wales Have Fewer Than 1,800 Prison Places Left for Men
Suspected People Smuggler Arrested After Investigation Identified Him
Children's Doctors Warn That Vaping Can Lead Young People to Smoking
Hundreds of Thousands of Students Receive GCSE and Vocational Results Across England, Wales and Northern Ireland
Here Is What Can Never Happen in Your Country: Taiwan Is Giving Money to All Its People Because It Collected Too Much Tax
UK Inflation Rises to 2.9% as Energy Bills Jump
UK Issues New Conduct Guide for Asylum Seekers on Consent and Respect
A Sleepless Night on Wall Street: Nasdaq to Begin Nearly Round-the-Clock Trading
"The First in the World": 69-Year-Old Protested Artificial Intelligence—and Went to Jail
Ukraine's Ousted Defence Minister Calls for Wartime Presidential Election
China’s Lifelike AI Humans Move From Livestreams Into Real-World Service Roles
Sarah Ferguson Reportedly Retreats to Late Ex-Boyfriend's Swiss Chalet
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez Sign Prenup Protecting Their Separate Fortunes
Thieves Steal Antonello da Messina Renaissance Masterpieces From Sicilian Museum
Better.com Founder Who Fired 900 Employees on Zoom Is Ousted as CEO
Italian Speed Camera Issues Nearly 32,000 Fines in 10 Weeks, Worth More Than €3 Million
AI Manager at San Francisco Store Recommends Firing Human Employee
Google Launches Pixel 11 With Gemini AI at the Center of Its Hardware Strategy
Reform UK Unveils Plan to Cut Welfare Spending by More Than £50 Billion a Year
Prime Minister Andy Burnham Praised Extinction Rebellion for Doing a 'Great Service'
UK Wildfire Phone Alert Triggers Backlash as Users Switch Off Emergency Warnings
Heathrow Roads Reopen After Burst Water Main Floods Access to Terminals 2 and 3
Former NBA Players Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White Say They Will Enter 2027 WNBA Draft
Former Cambridge Professor Jason Arday Found Dead Days After Resigning Amid Plagiarism Row
US Appeals Court Rules AI Agent's Website Actions Are Legally Attributed to the User
France's Constitutional Council Blocks Social Media Ban for Children Under 15
Liechtenstein Changes Royal Succession Rules to Allow Women to Inherit the Throne
Women Allege Rape and Sexual Abuse at British Army College for Teenage Recruits
Minnesota: Two independent investigators posed as Muslims (one wearing a burqa) and showed how they could vote in elections without identification.
×