LI firm told to stop marketing ozone 'therapy' as COVID treatment
The Federal Trade Commission is demanding that a Long Island company stop making "false claims" that its ozone therapy service can treat COVID-19.
The federal watchdog's letter to Riverhead-based Feelin O2 Good is one of about 160 sent nationwide to companies offering what the agency says are unverified treatments for the virus that causes COVID-19.
The letter dated May 21 said that Feelin O2 Good had posted an online video titled "Ozone Therapy: Effective Treatment for COVID-19." The description said that ozone therapy had been used to cure Ebola and SARS.
On Thursday, the video cited by the FTC had been removed from Feelin O2 Good's web page.
Calls and emails to Feelin O2 Good, which sells organic foods and holistic products, were not immediately returned.
On Thursday, the company's website listed a variety of products, including organic cauliflower (one head for $5.99), "organic medical grade coffee" ($16 for a pound), and "The Sacred Serum," described as a facial serum "ozone infused for anti-aging and cell repair" (one fluid ounce for $225).
Ozone gas, a form of oxygen considered a pollutant when it is at ground level, has found some proponents in alternative medicine circles.
The Food and Drug Administration, however, has determined that it has no verified medical uses.
Federal and state agencies have been seeking to halt a tide of claims that products can treat COVID-19.
Though vaccines are under development and anti-viral drugs have shown some impact, there are no known therapies that can prevent or cure COVID-19.
In March, New York Attorney General Letitia James ordered radio host Alex Jones to stop marketing products through his InfoWarsStores.com website as treatments for the coronavirus.
The InfoWars website, known for promoting conspiracy theories, marketed a variety of products for the virus, including Superblue Toothpaste said to kill "The whole SARS-corona family at point-blank range."
In April, a federal court entered a permanent injunction halting Purity Health & Wellness Centers in Dallas from offering ozone therapy as a treatment for COVID-19.
Other purported COVID-19 treatments that have drawn scrutiny from the FTC include: Chinese herbal medications, music therapy and shields said to boost the immune system by protecting the wearer from electromagnetic fields.
Ken Schachter covers corporate news, including technology and aerospace, and other business topics for Newsday. He has also worked at The Miami Herald and The Jerusalem Post.
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