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Why Is It Not Ok To Take Expired Medicines? See How To Dispose Of Them

As per the CDC, around 50,000 children end up in emergency rooms every year due to accidental consumption of medicines that they took while no adult was watching

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Written By: Kashish Sharma | Published : January 23, 2023 4:45 PM IST

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Medication expiration is a debatable issue in medical science because the medicine might or might not be as effective after the expiration date has passed.

When it comes to healthcare, we have lot many questions to ask. Medications are an important part of our lifestyle. We all are popping some or the other pill each day. An important question that is often missed is to ask for how long can we consume a medicine or for how long can we keep a medicine at home? It might be interesting to know that medication expiration is debatable for many researchers. Medication expiration and disposal are two important concerns that are less discussed and can have serious health and environmental consequences if not done correctly.

As per the CDC, around 50,000 children end up in emergency rooms every year due to accidental consumption of medicines that they took while no adult was watching. Medicines must be disposed of if they have expired, or are unwanted, unused, or unidentified. At the end of the day, medicines are chemicals and have potential side effects.

Do medicines actually get expired?

Expired medicines must be disposed of immediately and that too in a careful way so that they are not exposed to children and pets who might consume them accidentally. Some medicines can have serious side effects. Medication expiration is a debatable issue in medical science because the medicine might or might not be as effective after the expiration date has passed. The expiry date on the medicine cover means that till that day the manufacturer can guarantee its full potency and effectiveness. As per reports, there are medicines like insulin and others that lose their effectiveness with time. As per experts, medicines like antibiotics have to be widely used and must not be consumed beyond the prescribed period. Reportedly, consuming less-effective antibiotics can add to drug resistance and can make you prone to more severe illness.

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Sometimes improper storage of medicines in damp areas or areas having high temperatures can reduce their effectiveness even before they reach their expiration date set by the manufacturer.

How can we dispose of medicines in the right way?

Not all medicines might require the same disposal mechanism. Here are a few ways of disposal listed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-

  1. Certain medicines that might have well-established side effects and cause serious health consequences like death if consumed inappropriately must be flushed off to keep them away from children and pets. FDA has recognized that the dangerous side effects of these drugs on the human body outweigh the danger they might cause to the environment.
  2. When no specific instructions are given to dispose of the drug, one can put them in the garbage but they must be mixed with undesirable substances such as cans, or sealed bags and with some other form of covering that they might not be recognizable to people and animals who might go through the litter.
  3. One can also give unused drugs or tablets to community centres where medical waste might be regularly collected, detoxified and disposed of.
  4. One must never give any drugs or medicines to another person or throw them openly.
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Kashish Sharma

Kashish Sharma

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