Have you ever experienced having left over medications? Even though how much you dread wasting a good medication and wasting your hard-earned money, there’s really nothing you can do but to discard the unused medicines. But the question is, how are you to dispose of unused medicine? In recognition of National Poison Prevention Week, here are some tips on how to properly dispose of unused medicines.
Do not flush medications down the toilet. While it may seem to be a convenient solution to flush unused pills down the toilet, you should avoid doing so. Discarded medicines end up contaminating water supplies or end up in streams and lakes. In fact, the US Geological Survey conducted a study and found that a large percentage of streams in the US contained traces of medicines or pharmaceuticals. Although there’s no definite study yet about the effect of pharmaceuticals in the marine life, its contamination to the streams and rivers is concerning.
Look for the accredited list of disposal agencies in your area. Often, local pharmacies or city halls can provide you with a list of accredited companies that can dispose of unused medications properly.
By properly disposing of unused medications you’ll help keep medicine out of the hands of people using medications for improper use. You’ll also do your part in saving the environment by not contributing to the contamination of soil and the waterways.