Snake oil with a dangerous bite?
Miracle Mineral Solution, also known as MMS, is a chemical mixture touted as a cure-all for everything from cancer and autism to COVID-19.
The “miracle” is delivered in two small bottles: one contains a 28% sodium chlorite solution, the other an “activator” of vinegar, citric acid or hydrochloric acid.
When combined and ingested, MMS forms chlorine dioxide (ClO₂), a powerful bleach used in industrial water treatment, as a disinfectant and for bleaching textiles, pulp and paper.
Federal regulators have strongly urged consumers to avoid MMS at all costs, noting that drinking the solution is akin to drinking bleach and can cause a host of dangerous side effects, including vomiting, diarrhea, life-threateningly low blood pressure and liver failure.
Promoters of MMS erroneously claim these symptoms are the result of “parasites” that cause conditions like autism being flushed from the body.
There is no evidence that autism is caused by parasites, bacteria or viruses.
In a new study published in Scientific Reports, a team of scientists from Wroclaw Medical University in Poland analyzed the effects of acidified sodium chlorite (ASC), from which MMS is produced.
The team tested two ASC preparations, one with hydrochloric acid and one with gluconic acid, against various bacterial strains, including Staphylococcus aureus and E. coli.
Study authors note that while chlorine dioxide possesses antibacterial properties, it is effective only at concentrations toxic to human cells.
The team also analyzed the efficacy of ASC on dissolving biofilm, a protective structure of bacteria.
Again, they found that ASC was effective but also caused significant tissue damage.
“The results of the study indicate that effective concentrations of ASC against biofilms are also toxic to eukaryotic cells, but it cannot be ruled out that a formulation for external use will be developed that ensures the safety of use with high anti-biofilm efficacy,” explained Dr. Ruth Dudek-Wicher from the Department of Pharmaceutical Microbiology and Parasitology at Wroclaw.
Dudek-Wicher pointed out the large discrepancy in quality and quantity between industrially purified ClO₂ solutions and unregulated mixtures produced by MMS enthusiasts.
When used to disinfect water, the maximum residual of chlorine dioxide allowed is 0.8 parts per million. Per the mixing instructions that come with MMS, the concentration of chlorine dioxide in the ingested drops would be at least 25 times higher.
Experts note that at this dangerously high concentration, chlorine dioxide denatures enzymes and oxidizes proteins and fats, a process that can seriously damage the gastrointestinal tract.
Dudek-Wicher and her team also tested the effect of ASC on probiotic bacteria. They found the bacteria to be extremely sensitive to the MMS preparation, supporting the evidence that it can pose a serious threat to intestinal flora.
While the team emphasized the dangers of homemade MMS, they maintain that a safe oral form of ASC may be on the horizon.
“At the moment, we are not planning such studies, but we do not rule them out in the future. If a safe oral form of ASC is developed, an analysis of its impact on the microbiome will be necessary,” said Dudek-Wicher.
Dudek-Wicher and her colleagues said that the study’s purpose was to establish microbiology and combat dangerous medical misinformation.
“The most harmful mistake is to believe in the effectiveness of MMS without hard scientific evidence,” said Dudek-Wicher.
“In pharmacy and medicine, the benefit-to-risk ratio is considered. In the case of MMS, the benefit is zero, and the risk is high, especially since the dosage is often administered using non-standardized droppers…such fluctuations in the oral dosage of a corrosive substance are extremely irresponsible.”
Dudek-Wicher was particularly concerned about MMS being marketed to children and pregnant women and as a treatment for obesity.
“People turn to MMS because they are concerned about their health, and education must take this into account,” she said. “It is also essential to fund research that debunks myths. Science should protect citizens from misinformation.”
MMS was brought to market by self-described “alien” Jim Humble in the early 2000s. He believed the concoction soaked into the body’s cells, killing whatever illness was lurking within.
He said that users’ adverse reactions to MMS were a sign that the medicine was working.
Countless people became ill after taking it. Some were hospitalized. Some even died.
Dudek-Wicher and her team are analyzing other dicey “miracle” treatments, including DMSO, a chemical by-product of the wood-pulp industry billed as a preventive measure and an all-out cure for pain, inflammation and strokes.
