Chlorine dioxide is ClO2, it is NOT household bleach cleaner! Although anything that uses oxidation to remove color is considered a bleach. "Officially" according to the FDA (not that this means much) It is sold and approved for water purification, and is safe for use in food.. It's sprayed on produce to kill pathogens and bacteria before fruit/vegetables go to the market.

Did you know salt is NaCl? Table salt has chlorine in it.

With Chlorine Dioxide Your body turns the Chlorine into salt and uses the oxygen to oxidize and kill pathogens/bacteria.

"Sodium hypochlorite, bleach, (NaOCl or NaClO) are two distinctly different chemicals.

The real question is: Is chlorine dioxide(ClO2) the same as chlorine (Cl) or hypochlorite (ClO) . The short answer is a resounding NO!

However, before we look at why they are so different, let's look at why people tend to equate them

It does smell a lot like chlorine. It can also irritate the eyes and respiratory system if the concentration is too strong.

It disinfects, and kills micro-organisms.

Then of course the name.... Chlorine Dioxide..... and yes, Chlorine dioxide does have a Chlorine atom.

But.... So does salt, in fact the only elemental difference between table salt, sodium chlorite, and common bleach is the number of oxygen atoms attached to the molecule.

1 Sodium Atom + 1 Chlorine Atom = NaCl (Common Salt Molecule)

1 Sodium Atom + (1 Chlorine Atom +1 Oxygen Atom) = NaClO Sodium Hypochlorite Molecule (Common Bleach)

1 Sodium Atom + (1 Chlorine Atom + 2 Oxygen Atoms) = NaClO2 Sodium Chlorite Molecule

1 Sodium Atom + (1 Chlorine Atom + 3 Oxygen Atoms) = NaClO3 Sodium Chlorate Molecule

(Toxic, Used to make other chlorine compounds. Used as a pesticide and defoiliant,)

1 Sodium Atom + (1 Chlorine Atom + 4 Oxygen Atoms) = NaClO4 Sodium Perchlorate Molecule

(Non reactive electrolyte often used in molecular science for DNA extraction and hybridization.)

This is to demonstrate the difference a single atom can make in a molecule.

Pure sodium would ignite in your mouth, and pure chlorine has been used as a chemical weapon, yet table salt, a necessary mineral, is just a combination of the two. In fact these 2 elements, Sodium and Chlorine make up about .2% of your total body chemistry each.

Chlorine Dioxide vs Chlorine: What's the difference? This is the real focus of the issue, and the answer is really pretty simple. While both kill pathogens well.... Chlorine Dioxide does it differently, and more efficiently, without creating toxic byproducts. Chlorine Dioxide kills by oxidation, whereas Chlorine kills by substitution, (in this case called chlorination)"

https://kvlab.com/How-Chlorine-Dioxide-Works.html