If you type “dihydrogen monoxide” into Google you get 94,300 hits—an extraordinary number when you think about it. There are tons of sites out there that warn of the extraordinary and often unappreciated risks of dihydrogen monoxide (DHMO). There are also sites, which claim that the perils of DHMO are irresponsibly exaggerated by eco-Nazis. Just about everything that could be said, and perhaps should be said about DHMO, is out there.

For the record, it has been claimed that DHMO is: highly corrosive, lethal if inhaled, causes severe burns in its gaseous state, is used in nuclear power plants, is used as an industrial solvent and is a major component in acid rain—all of which is indisputable.

There are also occasional news stories about it, such as one in the Guardian which records the lamentable fact that city councilors of Aliso Viejo in Orange County, California, were nearly hoodwinked into taking action against the styrofoam industry because dihydrogen monoxide had been detected in styrofoam cups.

There’s an Anti-Dihydrogen Monoxide Coalition, located in Ames, Iowa, which pledges itself to remove all the Dihydrogen Monoxide from streams, rivers and lakes throughout America.

How can you tell that this is a hoax web site?

Because it doesn’t ask for money to support the cause.

But you never know, you might one day be asked for money to support the cause. According to junkscience.com, the Green party in New Zealand was fooled into supporting a ban on DHMO. Among other things they were persuaded by the fact that U.S. researchers Patrick K. McCluskey and Matthew Kulick found that nearly 90 percent of the US citizens they surveyed were willing to sign a petition to support an outright ban on the use of DHMO in the United States.

It seems strange that anyone would want to set up and maintain a website that is simply a long running hoax/joke, but I guess it proves a point. And, if there’s money in it, why not? The top site on the Google search for DHMO is dhmo.org which has entertained over 3 million visitors—you’d think the hoax would have died with that many people in the know. This site sells T-Shirts (which claim to be DHMO free) and also offers a specially made container which is appropriately marked with warnings, but can safely contain 5ml of DHMO. Every home should have one.