Clear your medicine cabinet to eliminate unforeseen dangers
A PHARMACEUTICAL company has conducted a poll that found many South Africans do not get rid of unused medicines at home.
Spokesperson for Pharma Dynamics Nicole Jennings said clearing out your medicine cabinet might be last on a person’s list of priorities, but doing so could eliminate unforeseen dangers.
In a Twitter poll, 89% of people had not cleaned out their medicine cabinet in the past two years.
She said one of the dangers of keeping unused medication at home is that it sometimes led to misuse among teenagers. “Another concern is accidental medicine overdose which is surprisingly common in South Africa. Leftover medication is often used to self-medicate, but when the wrong combination of medicines is mixed to treat minor ailments, consequences could be serious.”
In children, where there is easy access to multiple medicines, it could be fatal.
“About 40% of calls to the Poisons Information Centre at the Red Cross Children’s Hospital concerning children under the age of 5 are due to the ingestion of medicines,” Jennings said.
She said people rationalised and thought leftover medication, which included vitamins and health supplements, might come in handy some day, “but before you know it, those medicines have expired and may cause more harm than one realises”.
After expiry, many medications lose their effectiveness, and some may even become toxic. It’s important to keep in mind that once a medication has expired, manufacturers can no longer guarantee its safety, she said.
“A course of antibiotics should always be completed and never stopped halfway and taken again weeks or months afterwards when one feels ill again, as this could lead to antibiotic resistance, which is difficult to treat.
“Expired liquid medications, such as life-saving insulin or injectable treatments, tend to lose their potency and might not work well or at all.”
“There’s no point in hoarding medicine. You might think you’re saving money in the long run, but once it’s expired, it won’t be as effective, wasting your money, affecting your health and hygiene, and could even delay your recovery.”
Jennings said that when cleaning out their cabinets, people must discard expired medication. Once opened, it was introduced to germs and the clock started ticking on its shelf life.
Don’t discard medicines in the trash or in the toilet ,where they can end up in the water supply. Ask your local pharmacy if they offer an environmentally-friendly disposal programme. Or go to your nearest hospital or clinic, where they will place old medicines into biohazard containers for incineration.