Is it safe to split or break pills?

Are you among those thousands of people who cut a tablet into half before having it? Here's what you should know before you practise tablet splitting.

All of you must have done it at some time or the other in your lifetime - splitting tablets or pills into two. While your doctor might have suggested it at times, sometimes you even do this since the pain is not 'bad enough' or the problem is not 'big enough'. What you need to know is that it may not be safe every time. Besides, there is a right and wrong method of doing it and a strong reason behind why physicians may practise it.

To clear your confusion, here are answers to your questions with inputs from Dr. Arvind Aggarwal, Senior Consultant, Internal Medicine at Delhi based Sri Balaji Action Medical Institute.

1. Why is pill splitting actually practiced by physicians?

'Sometimes, pill splitting may be practiced to reduce the effect of the drug. But, we never recommend patients to practice pill splitting because it can have adverse effects. If the pills are not split evenly, then correct dosage does not get delivered at the right time. And this can be very dangerous,' says Dr. Aggarwal.

2. Can all types of pills be split into half?

'No. There are several pills that are not designed for splitting. At times, we recommend splitting some sedative pills basically to reduce sedation.' Read more about the dangers of frequent intake of sleeping pills.

Medicines like birth control pills, chemotherapy drugs, anti-seizure drugs, coated drugs and drugs that can be easily crushed should never be split or broken. Many of them get deteriorated after exposure to air or moisture. Also, such pills cannot be stored because they lose their potency.

3. Does splitting affect the effectiveness of the drug on the body?

'Yes. There are a few drugs that are meant to dissolve in the body over a certain period of time so as to allow their slow and steady release into the bloodstream. These drugs are said to have a sustained release preparation, which means they are designed in a specific way that allows them to be released slowly. If these drugs are split, their efficacy certainly decreases to a great extent,' says Dr Aggarwal. Here's some information on variation in efficacy of aspirin.

4. Can splitting reduce the side-effects of drugs?

'No. Side effects of the pills remain the same even after splitting them,' says Dr Aggarwal. Read about side-effects of ibuprofen.

So, before you decide to split a tablet into two, talk to your doctor whether it is safe to do so.

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