If your medicine cabinet is filled with expired or unused prescription medications, it is time for some housecleaning. As time passes, medicines may lose their effectiveness. The disposal method you choose can have a direct effect on the safety and the health of the environment.
Learn more about your options and how to safely dispose of all those old or unused medications.
Environmental Concerns:
Residues of
birth control pills,
antidepressants, painkillers, shampoos, and many other drugs and personal care products have been found in the water supply, in trace amounts. These chemicals are flushed into rivers from sewage treatment plants or leach into groundwater from septic systems. The discovery of these substances in water probably reflects that we have better ways to detect them now. The health effects, if any, from exposure to these substances in water is not yet known.
In many cases, these chemicals enter water when people excrete them or wash them away in the shower. Some chemicals, however, are flushed or washed down the drain when people discard outdated or unused drugs in the toilet or sink.
How to Properly Dispose of Medications:
Follow any specific disposal instructions on the prescription drug labeling or patient information that accompanies the medicine. Do not flush medicines down the sink or toilet unless this information specifically instructs you to do so.
If no disposal instructions are provided on the drug labeling or patient information, then:
Check with your police department to see if they have a drug collection program.
Check to see if your community's household hazardous waste, trash, or recycling program collects medications. To do this, they must have law enforcement officials present.
If no disposal instructions are provided on the drug labeling and no collection options exist, then follow these steps:
Remove all personal identification, including the prescription (Rx) number, from prescription bottles by covering it with a marker or scratching it off.
Mix all unused drugs with coffee grounds, kitty litter, dirt, or another undesirable substance. Do this with both liquid medications and pills or capsules. Place this mixture in a sealed container before disposing in the trash. Place the empty medicine containers in the recycling or trash.
Talk to your local pharmacist if you have any questions. As medication experts, pharmacists are available to guide you on how to properly dispose of your unused medications.
Additional Information & Resources: