When it comes to your health, there is no such thing as a dumb question.  “I get calls all the time at the clinic from people asking what to do with leftover medicine,” said Dr. Surinder Sabharwal, pharmacist at Lexington-Fayette County Health Department.  Almost always, the answer is to find out how to discard of them properly and to set a schedule for doing so.  “Twice a year you should go through your cabinets and look for old and expired medications,” said Dr. John Armistead, director of pharmacy at the University of Kentucky – Chandler Hospital. “As a good reminder, it might be the time we change our time for fall and spring.” Another time marker to check for expired medications that need disposing could be when you are changing the battery in your fire detectors and smoke detectors at home.

For discarding medications, there are several options.  “With certain prescriptions that are not severe, like headache medication, you can flush them down the toilet,” said William Blank of AARP Kentucky.  “For Oxycontin, Morphine and higher pain medicines that can be used by somebody else, you can break them down and mix them in powder and grind them up with water.”  It can be helpful to first crush the medicine in a zip-loc baggie so you know it dilutes through the water.  “The reason we recommend flushing is before they get back out into any kind of water system, they have to go through the sewer treatment plant so they get refined and chemicals break down in the water,” said Blank.  This means that instead of being dumped somewhere else, it gets cleansed first.  Animals that may go through garbage are also protected.  

Be sure to keep medications in a safe place that is out of reach from children and pets.  “Generally, people have medicine cabinets in the bathroom but ironically enough, that is probably the worst place to store medicine,” said Armistead.  Plan wisely and consider the room temperature.  “The best place is probably in the kitchen somewhere up high, not accessible to children and away from direct heat and humidity, which means not above the stove,” said Armistead.  

Before throwing out a vile, it is a good idea to remove or scratch out any identifying information such as your name or personal health status.  If you have any questions whatsoever, do not be afraid to consult with your pharmacist.  Some great venues are available to help you with the discarding process.  “There are community pharmaceutical take back programs throughout the state that have drop boxes at sheriff and police stations, CVS and WalMart,” said Blank.

Take the time to know what you have.  “You should have a medication list which has the name, strength and frequency of how often you take a medication,” said Armistead.  It is encouraged to share this list with your healthcare providers.  “One of the big mistakes that people make is they think the physician they are seeing knows everything they are taking and that is not true,” said Armistead.  Medications that require a prescription are not the only ones to mention to your doctor.  “Another thing that patients usually forget is to advise their providers that they are taking nutraceuticals or herbal medications,” said Armistead.  

There is no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to caring for medications.  “Around 90 percent of medications are supposed to be stored at room temperature but there are certain ones like children’s antibiotics and some injectables, inhalers and steroids that need to be refrigerated,” said Sabharwal.  If you hold on to medications, they may not lose their effect but can be used in a way that would harm somebody else or cause someone to be ill.  That is not the case for all drugs.  “Some medicines, over time, lose effectiveness once they expire, like Tylenol and Codene, because they tend to break down and are not as potent,” said Blank.  

When it comes to over-the-counter medications like Tylenol or Advil, guidelines may be looser.  “Anything 2 years old definitely should be gotten rid of at that point because it will not be as effective,” said Blank.  For stronger drugs, it is advised to stay true to the expiration date.  By knowing what drugs you have in your home, what their intended use is and properly discarding your medications, you are creating a safer environment for all.