Is your medicine cabinet filled with unused or expired drugs you no longer use? How should you dispose of them?
Most drugs are thrown in the household trash,
but consumers should take certain precautions before throwing them out,
according to Food and Drug Administration (FDA). few drugs should be flushed
down the toilet. And a growing number of community-based programs like "take-back" offer another safe disposal alternative.
Guidelines for Drug Disposal
FDA and White House Office of
National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) worked together to develop the first consumer guidance for
proper disposal of prescription drugs. Issued by ONDCP in February 2007 and
updated in October 2009, the federal guidelines are as followed here:
1.Follow any specific disposal directions on the drug label or patient information that accompanies the medication. Do not flush drugs in the toilet unless this information specifically directs you to do so.
2.Take advantage of community drug programs like take-back that allow the public to bring unused and expired drugs to a central location for disposal. Call your city government's household recycling and trash service to check if a take-back program is available in your community or not . The Drug Enforcement Administration,state and local law enforcement agencies are sponsoring National Prescription Drug Take Back Days throughout the United States.
3.If no directions are given on the drug label and no take-back program is available in your area, throw the drugs in the household trash, but first follow these steps:
1.Follow any specific disposal directions on the drug label or patient information that accompanies the medication. Do not flush drugs in the toilet unless this information specifically directs you to do so.
2.Take advantage of community drug programs like take-back that allow the public to bring unused and expired drugs to a central location for disposal. Call your city government's household recycling and trash service to check if a take-back program is available in your community or not . The Drug Enforcement Administration,state and local law enforcement agencies are sponsoring National Prescription Drug Take Back Days throughout the United States.
3.If no directions are given on the drug label and no take-back program is available in your area, throw the drugs in the household trash, but first follow these steps:
- Take them out of their original containers and mix them with an undesirable substance, such as used kitty litter or coffee grounds. The medication will be less appealing to pets and children, and unrecognizable to people who may intentionally go through your trash.
- Put the unsed drugs in a sealable bag, empty can, or other container to prevent the medication from breaking or leaking out of a garbage bag.
Some additional tips offered by Ilisa Bernstein, Pharm.D., J.D(FDA's Deputy Director of the Office of Complianc):
1.Before throwing out a container with medicine , scratch out all identifying information on the prescription label and make it unreadable. This will help to protect your identity and the privacy of your health information.
2.Do not give medications to your friends. Doctors prescribe medications based on a patient's specific symptoms and medical history. A drug that works for you may be dangerous for others.
3.When you are in doubt about proper disposal, consult your pharmacist.
Bernstein says that the same disposal methods for
prescription medicines could apply to over-the-counter drugs as well.
Why the Precautions?
Disposal directions on the label are part of
FDA's "risk mitigation" strategy, says Jim Hunter program senior manager . When a drug
contains directions to flush it down in the toilet, he says, it's because FDA,
working with the manufacturer, has determined this method to be the most
appropriate route for disposal that presents the least risk to safety.
Drugs like powerful narcotic pain relievers
and other controlled substances carry directions for flushing to reduce the
danger of unintentional use or overdose and illegal abuse.
For example, the fentanyl patch, adhesive
patch that delivers a potent pain drug through the skin, comes with directions to flush used or leftover patches. Excess fentanyl can cause
severe breathing problems and lead to death in babies, children, pets, and even
adults, especially those who have not been prescribed the drug.
"Even after using the patch, a lot of the drug remains in the patch," says Hunter, "so you wouldn't want to throw something in the trash that contains a powerful and potentially dangerous narcotic that could harm others."
"Even after using the patch, a lot of the drug remains in the patch," says Hunter, "so you wouldn't want to throw something in the trash that contains a powerful and potentially dangerous narcotic that could harm others."
Environmental Concerns
Despite the safety reasons for flushing drugs,
some people are questioning the practice because of concerns about trace levels
of unused drug residues found in surface water, such as lakes and rivers, and in drinking water supplies.
The main way unsed drug residues enter water systems is through people taking medications and then naturally passing them through their bodies, says Raanan Bloom, Ph.D., an environmental assessment expert in FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.
"Most drugs are not completely metabolized or absorbed by the body, and enter the environment after passing through waste water treatment plants."
The main way unsed drug residues enter water systems is through people taking medications and then naturally passing them through their bodies, says Raanan Bloom, Ph.D., an environmental assessment expert in FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.
"Most drugs are not completely metabolized or absorbed by the body, and enter the environment after passing through waste water treatment plants."
A company that wants FDA approval on its medicine must
submit a application to the agency. FDA needs, as part of the
application package, an assessment of how the drug's use would affect the
environment. Some drug applications are excluded from the assessment requirement,
says Bloom, based on previous action of agency .
According to the
Environmental Protection Agency, scientists till to date have not found any evidence of
adverse human health effects from pharmaceutical residues in the environment.
FDA does not want to add unsed drug
residues into water systems unnecessarily, says Hunter. The agency reviewed its
drug labels to identify products with disposal directions recommending disposal down the sink or flushing . This revised listing can be found at FDA's
Website on Disposal of Unused Medicines.
Another environmental concern is related to inhalers
used by asthma patients or other breathing problems like chronic
obstructive pulmonary disease. In general , many inhalers have chlorofluorocarbons (CFC's) damages the ozone
layer in atmosphere. The CFC inhalers are being phased out and replaced with inhalers which are more friendly to environment.
Aerosol products and inhalers may be thrown into recyclables or household trash or, or may be considered hazardous waste and require special handling.
Read the handling directions on the label, as some inhalers should not be thrown into a fire or incinerator or punctured. For safe disposal,
contact your local trash and recycling facility.
Check this article aon FDA's
Consumer Updates page, which features all related updates on FDA-regulated
products.
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